


The Bet

by anonymouschupacabra (accordingtomyresearch)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst with a Happy Ending, But also, Coffee Shops, Fluff and Smut, Libraries, M/M, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Sexting, Shameless Smut, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, everyone is pining, like it gets FLUFFY
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-13
Updated: 2017-03-20
Packaged: 2018-10-03 22:33:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 35,847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10260245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/accordingtomyresearch/pseuds/anonymouschupacabra
Summary: Something about the casual way Lance spoke to him, with easy grins and direct words that made Keith feel comfortable, but at the same time put him on edge. Like he wasn’t supposed to be feeling this ok around someone, not him. Keith, who barely had friends until college, shouldn’t have someone who could coax him into such a sense of security that he found himself agreeing to do things he’d never thought he’d do.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ainu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ainu/gifts).



> this is my commissioned fic for the lovely @ainu based on her rival's with benefits college AU hc's and it was sooooo much fun to write!!!! just fluffy, angsty, emotional porn. with plot of course. but there's porn lol

Lance took Keith’s hand in his, slowly and delicately intertwining their fingers together, watching a light smile form on Keith’s face. And without giving him time to react, he pinned him down on the bed below him, forcing his hand above his head. Grinning down at him, Lance moved to straddle Keith’s waist, gripping his other hand and moving it to pin both hands on the  bed above his head. Swirling his hips, Lance made slow, dragging circles, rubbing himself against Keith’s growing erection tenting in his pants. The satisfied smirk on Lance’s face grew as Keith let out an involuntary moan he desperately tried to swallow down.

Lance had no interest in Keith keeping quiet. Grasping both of Keith’s hands in his right, he traced his left hand down Keith’s chest drawing soft whimpers from him, making him squirm under him. With a smirk, Lance swiveled his hips, creating more and more friction between them as he dipped his hand under Keith’s tshirt. Keith swallowed in anticipation as his fingers walked up the hard muscles of his abs. Just as Lance’s finger grazed one of his nipples, Keith let out a shaky breath that sent a surge of lust through Lance. 

“Lance…” Keith moaned, his hips weakly thrusting upwards to create more contact between them. “Come on…” 

“You gotta be patient,” Lance grinned, tweaking Keith’s nipple between his fingers. 

“I’m not good at patience,” Keith whined, pulling at the hold Lance had on his hands. 

“Me neither,” Lance grinned darkly, pushing Keith's shirt up and attaching his mouth to Keith's nipple. 

On reflex, Keith's hips lifted up, pressing up against Lance’s groin as he sucked the skin between his teeth. Tossing his head from side to side, Keith tried to find more friction but each time he moved to search for some, Lance would move just slightly out of his way. Growing frustrated, Keith let out a groan as he arched his back. 

“Do you want me to fuck you?” Lance whispered against his skin, tracing his tongue against the skin on Keith's chest and moving onto his other nipple. 

“I don't have that much time,” Keith said between breaths, rolling his hips as Lance sucked and twirled his tongue around his skin. 

“Then I guess I'll just have to blow you,” Lance breathed, working his mouth up to the bend in Keith's neck. “If you promise to blow me after?” 

“Yes, sure whatever just please fucking touch my dick now,” Keith nodded with a pained desperation in his voice. 

“Do you promise?” Lance teased, delicately tracing the lines of hard muscles down from Keith's chest to his dick already hard in his pants. 

“ _ Yes _ ,” Keith strained, lifting his hips up searching for the pressure of Lance’s hand on him. 

“Hmmm…” Lance contemplated, swirling the tip of his index finger along the outline of Keith's dick. “Ok, I believe you.” 

In one fluid, well practiced motion, Lance let go of Keith's hands and pushed himself down the bed so that he was at eye level with Keith's dick. Without pause, he undid the fastenings on his pants and tugged down the waistband of his jeans until he could see his dick straining against the deep red fabric of his briefs. Still obviously in the teasing mindset, Lance touched the tip of his finger to where a small wet patch had formed from Keith's precum leaking through. 

“ _ Lance, _ ” Keith groaned, his hands still lying above his head. “Suck me off or leave.”

“Ok ok, I'm going,” Lance chuckled, dipping his fingers into the waistband of Keith's briefs and pulling them down. 

Lance barely gave Keith a moment to process before he was wrapping his lips around Keith's cock, engulfing him and bringing his mouth halfway down the shaft. The gasp that had been building in Keith's chest caught in his throat as Lance began a merciless pace, bobbing his head up and down, working what he couldn't fit in mouth with his hand. Keith let his eyes slide closed and just gave into the feeling of Lance’s mouth on him. 

Slowly, Keith let one of his hands slide down to his chest, thumbing at his nipple. He felt Lance hum around him, sending an excited shiver down his spine. Every thought in his mind slipped away and all he could think was  _ more more more _ . 

Soon Keith felt himself growing closer to cumming, and his other hand made its way down to Lance's head, his fingers gripping at his hair. He gave a few short tugs, just enough to let Lance know he was about to come. Just in time, Lance’s mouth popped off him with a slick wet sound, and he worked him in his hand, quickening his pace as Keith's breath became more and more ragged. All too soon, Keith let out a low grunt and came, spilling all over Lance’s hand, who worked him through his orgasm, slowing down with each subsequent motion. 

“You good?” Lance asked, his vice thick and slightly raw. 

“Yeah give me a sec,” Keith hummed as he tried to regulate his breathing. 

“You chill here for a minute, I'm gonna go wash my hands,” Lance said letting go of Keith's softening dick and easing up off the bed. “Then get ready to reciprocate.” He winked at Keith, who only rolled his eyes in response. 

Keith took the few moments Lance was in the bathroom to grab the nearest towel and wipe himself down, cleaning up the few droplets of cum that had landed on his thighs. Once he was clean he crawled off the bed, reaching over to the clean pile of semi folded clothes on his desk chair and grabbed a fresh pair of black briefs. He was just pulling them on when Lance walked back into the room, grinning at him. 

“Aight, I'm ready to get that good head,” Lance said plopping down on the bed, bouncing a few times. 

“You sure know how to set the mood,” Keith said dryly, reaching over to underneath his pillow and grabbing one of the few hair ties he kept there. “Ok let's get this over with,” he sighed, tying up his hair in a ponytail and kneeling next to Lance on the bed. 

“Damn don't sound so eager,” Lance said sarcastically, reaching for the clasps on his jeans and undoing the belt and zipper. 

“Ugh dude just lay down and let me suck your dick,” Keith said pushing at Lance’s shoulder to get him to lay back on the bed. He manhandled Lance into the position he wanted him in, spreading his legs with his knees while tightening his ponytail. 

“I love when you put your hair up for a blow job,” Lance grinned. “You're all ‘ _ let's get down to business, to defeat’ _ ”—he paused to make garish shooting gestures while doing drum sound effects— “ _ the huns’. _ ” 

“I'm going to leave you with a hard-on if you keep being stupid,” Keith frowned sitting back on his heels and crossing his arms. 

“No no, please don't do that. I'll be good, I’m a good boy,” Lance pleaded. “Please continue with the reciprocity.”

“Only because you already blew me,” Keith sighed scooting back. He pulled down Lance’s undone jeans, pinning him down with one hand on his chest and ripping off his belt and tossing it onto the floor with the other. Lance look at him with raised eyebrows in surprise. “I'm trying to re-establish the mood,” Keith shrugged, palming Lance through his boxers. 

“That's a way to do it,” Lance said wryly. “Or you could like, kiss me, or something.” 

“Nah,” Keith grinned pulling down the waistband on his boxers in one quick motion. Lance's dick sprang free, growing in length by the second. Keith wasted no time and bent down and lick a long stripe up the length of Lance's dick. 

“Oh–oh god warn a guy will you?” Lance said with absolutely no bite, reflexively throwing his hands up and hitting the wall behind him. His eyes began to flutter closed and his hands settled back on his chest as Keith slowly licked and sucked the outside skin, peeling back the foreskin at an agonizing pace. “F–fuck,” Lance gasped as Keith took the tip into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the head. 

Letting his own eyes slide closed, Keith focused on the heft of Lance's dick on his mouth. The thick feeling of the cock sliding deeper and deeper into his throat with each thrust. How he lost himself in the rhythmic movements, soundtracked by a ceaseless stream of fading breaths and muffled swears. 

Keith barely registered Lance tugging at his hair in warning before his mouth was flooded by his cum. Milking Lance for all he had, Keith felt the cum drop down out of his mouth and onto Lance's dick and his own hand. He came to a stop, sliding his mouth carefully off the tip, trying not to let the cum drop down his chin or cheek anymore that it already had. Without saying anything, he swallowed what was in his mouth, wiping his lips off with the back of his hand. He hadn't even noticed Lance staring at him as he got control of his breathing. 

“I know there's no precedence for saying this but damn that is hot, every time you do that,” Lance rasped. Keith looked down at him from where he was knelt between his legs. “Like too hot. Stop swallowing when we don't have time for round two.”

“I’ll try to remember that,” Keith rolled his eyes with a small smirk getting up off the bed and cleaning his hand with the same towel he used earlier. “I'm gonna go shower.”

“Yeah aight cool,” Lance nodded. “Once I have feeling in my legs again I'm gonna go.”

“Ok,” Keith said no longer paying attention and grabbing more clean clothes from the pile on his desk chair. 

“But hey,” Lance said. Keith turned to look at him. “It's been a blast,” Lance winked, giving dual finger guns. 

“Get out of my apartment,” Keith said flatly, turning away and going out of the bedroom and across to the bathroom. 

“You can't resist my charms forever!” He heard Lance call after him as he closed and locked the door to the bathroom. 

_ Watch me,  _ Keith thought to himself as he turned on the faucet.

* * *

 

There was a stack of books a mile high on the library cart in front of Keith, and he wanted nothing to do with it. Theoretically, he knew that doing work at his work–study program was what he was supposed to be doing, but the thought of sorting anymore biographies and shelving history textbooks was enough to make him toss back his head and groan. 

“I know buddy,” he heard Pidge say sympathetically from behind him. “I feel the same.” 

“Why can’t people put their own books back?” Keith bemoaned, scowling at the cart. 

“Because then the world would be a better place, and who wants that?” Pidge said sarcastically, pushing forward her own cart overflowing with books in need of reorganizing. “Also you and I’d be out of a job.” 

“Fair enough,” Keith shrugged, placing his hands on the cart’s handles and maneuvering it to face the right direction. “Still, this sucks.” 

“Maybe next time we’ll send in our apps in time and get that cushy ass job in the Bursar's office,” Pidge said conspiratorially. “You know, like the one that Shiro had last year? Where he sat down on an actual chair and there was free coffee and treats all the time.”

“You’re still jealous?” Keith asked. 

“I’m still jealous,” Pidge said flatly. 

“Me too,” Keith half grinned. “Although,” he sighed, looking down at the books, “this isn’t so bad. We could be baristas.” Pidge giggled. 

“I’d rather die than be a coffee bitch,” Pidge said with a feigned seriousness. 

“Hey, I hear you talking shit about being a barista,” Lance’s voice came from behind them. 

“Oh shit, fuck buddy at 12 o’clock,” Pidge stage whispered into Keith’s ear before pushing her cart away as quickly as she could, which was not very fast at all.   
“Thank you Pidge,” Keith said dryly, watching her struggle to make her hasty exit. “Doesn’t really work if the person spoke to us first—and she’s gone.” He turned his head and watched Lance swagger over to stand next to him, leaning against a book stack in a way he must have thought was seductive. “What are you doing here?” Keith asked, eyeing Lance’s ridiculous posture. 

“I was wondering when you were getting off so we could, uh, you know,  _ get off _ ,” Lance said chuckling at his own stupid joke. 

“Go home Lance,” Keith sighed, pushing his cart towards the section of the library he need to go to. 

“What, why?” Lance asked, breaking character immediately, taking quick steps to walk alongside him. “Do you have to work late? We could meet up later, if you want?” 

“Thanks for the offer,” Keith said side eyeing Lance, not pausing in his walk. “But I do have homework to do. You know, that thing you do for your classes.” 

“Yeah I know of it,” Lance grinned, keeping in step with Keith. “I did it all. I’m a good boy.” A slight chill went down Keith’s spine as he recalled those words coming from Lance’s mouth in an entirely different scenario. 

“Well, bully for you,” Keith said, harsher than he’d intended, trying to cover up the way Lance’s words were getting the rise out of him in the way that he was sure Lance had intended. “Anyway, I don’t get off of work for another 3 hours so you can find someone else to stick it to.”   
“Fine,” Lance sighed, as if Keith’s suggestion was inconveniencing him in some horrible way. “I guess I’ll have to get off with someone else tonight.” 

“Poor baby,” Keith said sarcastically, patting Lance’s shoulder. “Now get out of my library.”

“Jeez, you are just really bossing me around today aren’t you?” Lance tsked with a shake of his head. “And even not in the sexy way that I like.” 

“Oh my god, get out. Before you cum in your pants,” Keith said rolling his eyes, and shoving lightly at Lance’s arm, pushing him towards the door. 

“Alright I’m going, I’m going,” Lance chuckled. “But like, hit me up tomorrow. We can do some studying together, _ if you know what I mean _ .” He wiggled his eyebrows at Keith suggestively, and Keith did everything to restrain himself to punch him in the face. 

“Get the fuck out of my face,” Keith exhaled. 

“See you later for some—” Lance made a crude sexual gesture with his fingers as he walked backwards out of the library. 

“I hate him so much,” Keith said to himself, shaking his head as he watched Lance turn around and walk the right way out of the library. 

“No you don’t,” Pidge’s voice came out of nowhere.   
“Jesus fuck, you scared me,” Keith jumped in place, startled by Pidge’s sudden appearance next to him. She was standing leaning against a bookcase, cart of books gone, with a bag of cool ranch doritos in his hand. 

“Sorry about that,” Pidge said, not sound sorry at all. “But, no,” she crunched on a chip, “You don’t hate him.” 

“Fine,” Keith gave in slightly. “I don’t  _ hate _ him, but I don’t like him.” 

“Oh, you like him,” Pidge said knowingly, eating another chip. 

“I mean, I like him enough for him to, like, suck my dick,” Keith shrugged. 

“You like him more than that,” Pidge said, pulling a chip out of the bag and gesturing at him with it. 

“No I don’t.” 

“Yes, you do,” 

“No, I don’t.” 

“Yes, you do.” 

“No I— this is going nowhere,” Keith interrupted himself. “The point is, Lance and I aren’t even friends. We’re just like…” 

“Fuck buddies,” Pidge said nonchalantly. 

“Yeah,” Keith said reluctantly, reaching over and pulling out a chip from the bag before Pidge could stop him. “Let’s go with that.” 

“Because that’s what you are,” Pidge said smugly. “You’re buddies, who fuck. Fuck buddies.” 

“We’re not buddies,” Keith frowned at the word, chewing on one side of his mouth. “More like acquaintances.”

“Fuck acquaintances doesn’t have the same ring to it,” Pidge said motioning around with the bag of chips. “How about fuck associates? No that’s worse. Um… give me a second here, I’ll think of something.” 

“It’s perfectly fine,” Keith said with a small smile for his ridiculous friend, as he continued to push his cart towards the aisle.

* * *

 

“Ok, and that’s about all the material I have prepared for class… apparently,” Keith’s Business Law professor Coran, said once he reached the end of his powerpoint, seemingly sooner than he had expected. “So, look at that, you’re free to go a whole,” he looked down at his watch, “Wow 36 minutes early. Just uh...if anyone sees you don’t tell them I let you out early. Tell them you’re skipping class. Have a good weekend guys.”

“Well that was lucky,” Hunk said leaning into Keith’s ear as he shoved his laptop into his backpack. “Getting out half an hour early on our last class of the day on a Friday?” 

“It’s almost like the universe wants us to be happy,” Keith joked, closing his macbook and sliding it into his bag.

“Don’t jinx it,” Hunk laughed, climbing out of his seat and tossing his bag over his shoulder. “Out before six on a Friday, I don’t even know what to do with myself.” 

“Well, all this really means for me is an extra 15 minutes of studying time for my  Philosophy of Law quiz on Monday,” Keith sighed, sliding the strap of his satchel around his neck, letting his bag rest against his right side. 

“Dude,” Hunk said, feigning being wounded. “Take a break.” 

“I can’t,” Keith said regrettably. “It’s literally my hardest class for no actual reason other than my professor is a dick.” 

“Fine,” Hunk relented. “But at least come get coffee with me before you go into your little studying hidey hole.” 

“Ok,” Keith agreed with a small smile.

A few minutes after the professor had let the class out early, the lecture hall had already emptied out, and they were able to walk out of the room with ease. They exited the hall and entered the spacious atrium lobby of the main pre-law building where the rest of the class had spilled into. Not wanting to be stuck in the lobby with all those people for any longer than he had to, Keith pushed his way out of the lobby and out into the warm desert evening. 

The walk to the off-campus coffee shop was thankfully short and pleasant. Being still during the time when most students were in class, the area was fairly empty, filled with only the few students who spent their time lounging on the many seating areas and few grassy lawns. Keith and Hunk walked off campus, talking quietly about the material they just learned and their upcoming project that was due within the month. 

Keith liked talking with Hunk, he always made him feel like what he had to say was valid and important, and he never pressured the conversation and he let it die out naturally into comfortable silence. Hunk was the first person Keith referred to as his friend, all the way back to the first week of orientation when they’d met in the Meet & Greet with his classmates. He had instantly connected with him over their mutual like of drinking their coffee black with nothing in it. Keith still remembers how he lingered by the food table, his hands fiddling with the red coffee straw as he waited for the much larger guy in a bright yellow button down to finish serving himself a particularly tall cup of coffee. 

“Oh, am I in your way?” Hunk had said to him, gesturing to the table in front of him with the array of creamers and sweeteners. 

“Um, no,” Keith had swallowed nervously. “I take mine black.” 

“Oh woah me too!” Hunk said happily. Keith swore he could actually feel the warmth from his smile. 

As they walked up to the coffee shop window in companionable silence, Keith held the door open for his friend, waiting for him to completely enter before following behind. Once he walked in and approached the counter, the soft and pleasant mood dissipated almost immediately at the sound of one all too familiar voice.  

“Yo, Hunk whaddup,” Lance said leaning over the counter to clap hands with Hunk. “You’re here early? You cutting class?” 

“Nah, Coran let us out early,” Hunk shook his head. 

“Us?” Lance said questioningly. Keith leaned to the side, so that he was no longer blocked by Hunk’s body and Lance could see him. “Oh Keith,” Lance smiled, his face visibly brightening. “What do you want? Anything. It’s on me if we trade blowies later.” 

“I’m pretty sure that’s prostitution Lance,” Keith said pretending to think for a moment.  

“Nah, it’s only hooking if you paid for it with cash,” Lance waved off dismissively. “This is more of an exchange of goods and services. A barter system.” 

“I can pay for my own drinks,” Keith said not wanting to banter with Lance any longer, but not resisting the smile that formed on his face from Lance’s absurdity. 

“Suit yourself,” Lance shrugged as he turned to the coffee machines. 

Keith watched him grab two cups with one hand and reach for the nozzle of the dispenser with the other. His long fingers that Keith felt annoyingly familiar with, moved across the machinery with a practiced ease. Keith felt a vague urge to ask Lance when he got off so they could get off in the way Lance constantly did to him. But he dismissed that idea as quickly as he had it.

“Here you go, two abominations in a to–go cup,” Lance said lightly. That’ll be $2 each.” 

“Sorry we can’t all drink diabetes in a cup,” Hunk said as they each handed Lance the money. “You’re gonna have death by whipped cream from all those lattes.” 

“But what a way to go,” Lance said dreamily, as he put their cash into the register.

“Yeah ok,” Hunk said, sharing a look with Keith who just said nothing and took a sip of his coffee. “I’ll see you later Lance,” Hunk called back as they walked towards the door. 

“Wait, I forgot to ask,” Lance said stopping them before they could open the door. Keith and Hunk both turned in place, looking at Lance expectantly. “Are you going to the party tomorrow?” 

“What party?” Keith asked at the same time as Hunk said “Yeah.” 

“You don’t know?” Lance asked, raising his eyebrow at Keith. He only shrugged and shook his head, looking between them both. “The party at Rolo’s place? The one he throws every midterm?” 

“First time hearing about it,” Keith said. 

“Oh my god, please get out more,” Lance sighed. “You know what,” he held up his hands as if to gesture he didn’t want to argue anymore, “I’ll just text you the details and you decide if you want to socialize like a human being or not.” 

“Thanks?” Keith said, not sure how to respond.   
“Thank me later, when you’re 4 beers in and we’re doing jello shots,” Lance said like that was a reasonable way to show appreciation. “Or you can come by my place when I finish my shift and we can—” 

“Bye,” Keith said not even letting Lance finish his sentence. 

He pushed open the door to the shop and stepped outside, not wanting to pause to wait for Hunk so that he didn’t have to hear the rest of what Lance was going to say. Part of being socially awkward and moderately friendless was the level of uncomfortableness he felt when Lance openly discussed their possible future sexual encounters so publically. 

Of course, to their friends they had never really officially disclosed their interactions, and all of Lance’s talk could be theoretically hypothetical. But Keith knew that his friends weren’t stupid and knew very well aware of what was going on between them behind closed doors. And in storage closets. And on top of desks. And occasionally in the shower. 

“You can’t let Lance rile you up,” Hunk said catching up with Keith a few steps away from the door to the coffee shop. “He’s just messing with you because he knows he can get a rise out of you.” 

“I know,” Keith shrugged, taking a sip from his drink as the walked down the peacefully quiet street of the small university town. 

“So why do you let him get to you?” Hunk asked. 

That was a question Keith often wondered himself; why even let Lance make jokes like that? At first he thought that he didn’t have many friends, so he didn’t care what people thought about him. He quickly learned that was horrendously false. He then briefly considered it was because he thought it was funny, to which he couldn’t even understand how he could not know himself well enough to know that that couldn’t have been even remotely true. His currently theory was that deep down, in the part of him that he couldn’t believe even existed, liked the attention— more so, he liked the attention specifically from Lance. But there was no way he was going to say that out loud, and especially not to Hunk: the sweetheart with the best intentions and a blabbermouth like one couldn’t believe, not to mention Lance’s very own childhood best friend and current roommate. So he said the next best thing. 

“He doesn’t get to me,” Keith said, the words tasting untrue and forced in his mouth. He hoped that Hunk didn’t notice. “I just don’t feel like having the other customers hear what depraved thing Lance was about to suggest he and I do.”  

“Fair enough,” Hunk said, not pressing the point any further, but clearly not 100% convinced.

* * *

 

Keith was just about halfway through his internal monologue convincing himself that he needed a study break when he felt his phone get a text notification, giving him the perfect opportunity. Closing his textbook, Keith sat back in his desk chair and pulled his phone out of his front pocket. On the screen he read the name  **Lance** and let out a long sigh from his nose. He slid the notification and unlocked the phone to read the text. 

**Lance: the party is tomorrow around 10 but show up any time you want. It's at Rolo’s house the big blue one on the block with the tree that got split in half in the thunderstorm (I just realized I don't know the address lmao)**

Keith read the text over twice before pondering a response. 

**Keith: Yeah I might go thanks.**

Thinking that was the end of that, Keith locked his phone and placed it screen side down, on his desk next to him. But just as his hands landed on his textbook he heard his phone vibrate against the wood. Frowning at the phone, he picked it up and flipped it over to read the text notification on the lock screen. 

**Lance: so whatcha doing?**

Rolling his eyes, knowing exactly where this was leading, Keith texted out the briefest, most curt response he could think of. Something that screamed “I'm busy.”

**Keith: studying.**

He didn't even have enough time after he locked his phone again to put it back down before he felt it vibrate in his hand. 

**Lance: how about you take a break from studying ;)**

Keith could practically feel the horniness ebbing from the text. He didn't have to wait too long before he was proven right. 

**Lance: nudes 4 nudes?**

Frowning, Keith quickly typed out a response. 

**Keith: I'm not sending you nudes, I'm studying.**

This time Keith didn't bother locking his phone and he just waited with the conversation open for Lance's response. 

**Lance: how about I send you some for you to enjoy at your leisure?**

Keith stared at his phone contemplating Lance's offer. He didn't feel completely against the suggestion; he didn't mind the idea that a hot guy was pleasuring himself and sending him images of it as he studied. And theoretically, he could use this time to take his study break and enjoy the nudes in real time. 

Before Keith could even make a decision, his phone vibrated and lit up with a new text notification. On the lock screen Keith could tell it was a photo of some expansive tan skin, and he quickly unlocked the phone to see it. 

The picture he had been sent was relatively tame in theme; just a picture of Lance standing in front of his full length mirror in his bedroom, holding his blue and white striped shirt up to reveal the taut abs and the deep V that dipped into his low riding jeans. Keith's mind went somewhat blank, and he could only imagine and remember himself running his tongue along that line. 

Without a response, his phone vibrated with a new message, another picture. This time it just appeared in full on the chat screen. This picture was much more suggestive; Lance's shirt was completely off and he was palming himself through his acid–washed, slightly ripped at the knee, jeans. 

At this point Keith started to feel a certain stirring in his groin, that hot swimming feeling in his gut that meant he was most likely going to need to cum within the next few minutes or he was going to be very uncomfortable for a while. He closed his macbook, and moved himself from his desk chair to his bed. And just as he sat himself down on the bed and began to unbutton his jeans he felt his phone vibrate again. 

**Lance:do you want me to continue? It's gonna get p R rated from now on ;p**

Huffing, Keith felt almost offended that Lance even had to ask. With the hand that wasn't currently shoved into his boxer briefs, he typed out a quick response. 

**Keith: if youbwant**

The response was almost immediate. 

**Lance: is that a typo? Could that mean that you might be typing with one hand? ;)**

Groaning at Lance’s level of annoyance, Keith took his time to respond, making sure he didn't give away that he was actually enjoying the prospect of getting a series of Lance's nudes. 

**Keith: are you done and are you gonna leave me alone now?**

Knowing that Lance was probably going to see right through that, Keith settled himself back against the pillows on his bed, ready for whatever Lance was going to send his way. His phone vibrated in no time. 

**Lance: alright /don't/ tell me you're jerkin it to my pictures, I already know you are ;p**

Before Keith could even protest, he received another picture. 

It was obvious that Lance had moved to his own bed from the way he was laying down. But to Keith it was obvious that this picture was going to be the first in a long line of slowly more sexual pictures. Lance was lying on his back, both his shirt and jeans discarded, only in his navy boxers. His hand was dipped under the waistband, in very much the same way that Keith's hand was in his own, only he was gripping the outline of his hard dick. The picture was taken from a weird angle where Keith could mostly only see Lance's body but there was a little bit of his face that showed he was smirking. 

_ That little shit _

Just as he processed that thought, his phone received another picture. This one was the most obscene of them all. Lance had his erection in his hand, free from the confines of his boxers and thick in his hand. Keith did all but moan out loud as his hand in his briefs began to move, stroking himself to hardness. 

Keith didn't even have time to completely wrap his mind around the previous picture when he got another. This time Lance's forefinger was touching the head of his dick, fingering the beads of pre cum. Keith felt a shiver go through him and his hand sped up, stroking himself as he took in the image in front of him. He barely noticed when his phone vibrated with a new text. 

**Lance: heyvi have an idea, could you wait a minute or two?**

_ Who's typing with one hand now _ ? Keith thought competitively. Nonetheless he typed out his response. 

**Keith: yeah.**

**Lance: lit.**

Keith went to drop his phone down next to him so he could focus on jerking off when his phone vibrated one more time. Furrowing his brow, he picked it up to look at it. 

**Lance: maybe you could throw me a bone and you know like, let me see your boner? Lol ;p**

Rolling his eyes at Lance's presumptuousness, Keith sighed heavily as he debated Lance's request. On one hand he was still holding out on maintaining the image that he wasn't interested or reacting to Lance's actions. But he knew that the point was moot now, and they both knew he had been interested from Lance's first suggestion. But on the other hand a part of him in the back of his mind wanted nothing more than to know that Lance was getting off to the images of him. 

Coming to a quick decision, Keith tapped on the camera option, and took a photo of himself. Just before he sent it he studied it to make sure it was ok. It wasn't the best picture, blurry on the edges but it did the job. It showed Keith's right hand wrapped around his hard cock, with his briefs and jeans pushed down his thighs. Before he could second guess it, he sent it. 

It was a few, long seconds before he got a response. 

**Lance: yeah you should totally send me a hundred more photos, that’s so hot**

Keith could feel himself blushing involuntarily. His eyes reread the last three words over and over as he tried to remember anyone else calling him hot. He couldn’t recall a single person. 

**Lance: ok while you take some more pictures for me I’m gonna prepare you a little somethin–somethin ;)**

Shaking his head at the text, Keith locked his phone and put it face down on the bed. He couldn’t believe how forward Lance was sometimes. Perhaps it was what got him into this mess in the first place. Because no other guy had ever flirted so openly with him before— or at least Lance was the first person he noticed. Or maybe because he’d never really had any experience doing anything remotely sexual with anyone and he thought  _ why not learn before I get a boyfriend? _ And it might be because he was vaguely attracted to Lance… a bit more than vaguely, maybe even admittedly very attracted to Lance. 

But who wouldn’t be? With his confident grin, and his broad shoulders, those long legs, and that perfect, unblemished tan skin. Keith couldn’t conjure up a hotter guy. Maybe Shiro. But Lance was interested him— rather, interested in getting into his pants. Which he had. Several times. Quite frequently actually. 

Keith wasn’t even sure he knew what he was getting himself into when he began this long string of hook ups with Lance. Maybe a distant part of him thought they’d eventually become boyfriends, or that he’d meet someone else before things went on for too long. Yet here they were, 2 years later, still doing the same thing: sexting, almost flirting, hooking up regularly. If Keith wanted to make himself laugh, he might almost suggest that they were already dating, but one look at the way Lance acted when Keith wasn’t immediately around and it was obvious there was no understanding of fidelity between them. 

Lance was a notorious and shameless flirt, charming his way into many a person’s pants with a few words and a suggestive touch. Keith knew first hand just how powerful Lance on his A-game could be, and he’d seen it work on others just as successfully. But there was something about all that attention focused on him…

His phone vibrated several times, in quick succession, pulling him out of his thoughts, preventing him from going too far down the rabbit hole. He hadn’t even realized he had been stroking himself the whole time until he let out a breathy moan. Feeling around for his phone, Keith lifted it up to his face to read the texts on the lock screen. 

**Lance: this would have been much easier to do if i was looking at you but here you go ;p {video attachment}**

Keith swallowed thickly, quickly unlocking his phone and going into their messages. He could see the thumbnail of the video with the small play button in the center and he could already tell it was going to be a doozy of a video. He quickly raised the volume, silently thanking the universe that he had his own apartment. Tapping on the play button on the screen, Keith turned his phone to the side and laid down comfortably to watch the minute long clip Lance had sent him. 

It began with Lance adjusting the phone so that he could film himself sitting up in his bed, his legs spread apart as he leaned back against several pillows propping him up. Keith could only see from just below his knee and up to his mouth but that was enough; Keith was hooked. Lance slowly rubbed his hand down his chest, pausing briefly to pull at his nipples, before sliding his hand all the way down and wrapping it around himself. He gave a few half hearted tugs with his right hand, as his left reached over to his nightstand and grabbed a small container of lube. Popping the lid open with his teeth, Lance poured some onto his dick and in his hand before placing the container back on his nightstand. Now properly lubed, Lance moved his hand over his dick with ease, creating a slick squelching noise that shot straight to Keith’s dick. 

Keith’s eyes were glued to the screen as he watched Lance jerk himself, his breath becoming more and more ragged with each passing second. Keith’s own hand sped up to match in time with Lance’s as he imagined it was Lance’s hand on his dick right now. He heard himself stifle a moan just as the video ended with Lance just starting to get a good solid rhythm, and Keith felt himself left hanging, needed more to get himself completely off. 

He didn’t even register his phone vibrating in his hand until he saw the text from Lance. 

**Lance: I’m guessing you’re enjoying my content? ;D**

**Lance: do I get anything for my efforts?**

Feeling annoyed and desperate to cum, Keith quickly went into his camera app, and slid to the video function. He grabbed a discarded hoodie off the floor next to his bed and set it up so he could lean his phone against it. Next, he violently pulled off his pants, briefs and t-shirt, tossing them onto the floor before laying back down on the bed. He adjusted his pillow behind him, so he could lean back comfortably. Pouring some lube in hand, Keith leaned forward with his clean hand to start the recording and then laid back and began. 

He was too far gone to do any real teasing, or foreplay and he just dove right in. Grabbing himself in his hand, he fisted his dick at a steady pace recalling the images he had just seen in the video. A few low, breathy gasps escaped from his mouth as he felt his orgasm building low in the pit of his stomach. He rolled his head back, spreading his legs further apart, as his pace became frantic and wild. 

Biting his lower lip, Keith felt the beginnings of his release gather at the base of his cock and he let out a low moan as he came, spilling onto his hand and chest. He worked himself through the waves of heat and pleasure, images of Lance’s smirking face and taut body floating through his mind as his breathing slowed and he came down. Swallowing thickly his body relaxed, collapsing on the bed, still holding his softening dick in his hand. 

After a few seconds he remembered that he was recording himself and he tiredly sat up and used his clean hand to tap the screen and shut off the recording. He leaned over and grabbed his towel that was draped over his dresser and wiped his hand and chest clean of cum before picking his phone back up again. 

Feeling sort of silly now that he had cum and was no longer desperately horny, he grimaced as he played back part of the video of himself. He had to admit it looked fairly pornographic, a similar angle to how Lance recorded his only, he could see all of his face, more of his legs the way they were spread apart as he touched himself. Keith had to stop after he heard the fifth consecutive breathy gasp, but decided to send the video anyway. 

Clicking to add the video attachment, Keith sent it to Lance before he could think too much about it. He locked his phone and dropped it next to him on the bed, throwing his arm over his eyes as he laid down, wondering how Lance could get him to do these sorts of things. 

Even just a year ago, he never imagined he’d ever be recording himself masturbating and texting it to a… friend? Were they friends? Keith wasn’t sure where exactly he stood with Lance. All he knew was that they had mutual friends and somehow, through ways that Keith was still uncertain about, they’d developed some sort of friends-with-benefits relationship, that they never explicitly disclosed to their friends, but was widely understood. 

Keith felt his phone vibrate several times next to him and it took him a full minute to work up the courage to see Lance’s reaction to his video. Sighing, Keith reached around next to him for the phone and unlocked it, bringing the chat screen up to his face. 

**Lance: HOLY SHIT**

**Lance: YOU hjasdbqbweiuqwe You fucking DID IT OMG**

**Lance: dude that was so hot like I came so hard**

**Lance: we should do this all the time**

There was something about all that attention focused on him… 


	2. Chapter 2

“Keith it's been 3 hours are we done?” Hunk whined flopping his head onto his notebook for the 5th time that hour. 

“The law library closes in half an hour, we can make it until then,” Keith said not even looking up from the myriad of notes in front of him. 

“But I'm so tired,” Hunk groaned. “And it's already half past nine. How much more studying do we have to do?” 

“You can go if you really want, I'm gonna stay a little bit longer though,” Keith said pulling out his second Business Law textbook from his backpack and setting it on the table. “My part of the project isn’t completely done yet.” 

“Yes it totally is, you damn perfectionist,” Hunk said exasperated. “We did the mock presentation last week and it went fine. More than fine. The finest.”   
“Yeah but I’m concerned that some of my information—”

“ _ Keith _ ,” Hunk said stressing his name. “Dude, it’s a Saturday night. You spend so much of your time at the other library as it is. Let’s leave and do something that doesn’t have to do with–with” Hunk looked down at the first thing he could read on his notes, “financing and governance of business enterprises. What does that even mean?” 

“I hope you know what it means, we’re giving a presentation on it in two weeks,” Keith said dryly, still not looking up from where he was writing his notes. 

“Of course I know what it means I’m just tired,” Hunk frowned. Keith looked up at him over the bridge of his nose. “Pwease?” 

“Fine,” Keith sighed, giving in to Hunk’s puppy dog eyes. “I’m out of redbull anyway, so I guess we can go.” 

“Thank god,” Hunk said in relief, jumping up from the table and pushing everything into his backpack. With considerably less vigor, Keith also began putting away his things, and closing his notebooks. “And if we leave now, we can grab some dinner and then head over to Rolo’s for the party.” 

“Oh,” Keith began unsurely, pausing in his motions. Hunk looked up at him with confusion on his face. “I’m… I wasn’t gonna go,” he said looking off, as he went back to packing away his stuff. 

“What? Why not?” Hunk asked. “It’s gonna be awesome: free beer, dope music, someone usually streaks, it’s a grand old time.” 

“It’s just not really my thing,” Keith shrugged, not looking up Hunk as he zipped up his bag. Grabbing his phone from the table he tapped the home button and his screen lit up, displaying the litany of notifications he’d received while he had been busy in his notes. He noticed several from Lance, and it took everything in him not to roll his eyes.

**Lance: I’m pre-gaming with Pidge if you and Hunk are done being uber nerds you guys should join us**

**Lance: nvm Hunk just told me that you’re still holding him hostage in the law library**

**Lance: you should ditch your dumb studying and do shots with me ;P**

**Lance: keeeeeeef i have a lime jello shot that has your name on it**

**Lance: nvm i took the shot**

Keith couldn’t help but shake his head and smirk to himself at Lance’s texts. The thought that Lance was thinking about him while he was out, gave him a weird churning feeling in his gut that he wasn’t sure what to make of. He realized that he must have been staring at his phone too long when he hear Hunk coughed for his attention. 

“Whatcha reading?” Hunk said knowingly. Keith glanced up at him from across the library table and saw Hunk’s grinning face. “Texts? From  _ Lance _ ?” 

“Um, yeah,” Keith said biting away the smile from his face, and shoving his phone into his back pocket. He tried his hardest not to look up at Hunk, but he could practically feel his eyes burrowing into his skull. “What.” 

“Nothing,” Hunk said defensively, still grinning like an idiot at him. Keith could feel annoyance tickling at the back of his neck. 

“You clearly have something to say,” Keith said flatly. 

“Nope,” Hunk shook his head grinning wider. “It’s just that…”

“Oh god here we go,” Keith rolled his eyes, throwing his satchel strap over his shoulder and turning around to walk away. He had no interest in hearing Hunk’s long winded theories on how he and Lance were circling each other like two lions ready to pounce, as he once so vividly put it. Hunk always had a comment when he and Lance interacted, and Keith knew he wasn’t going to be let off the hook for smiling at the texts— an action he so regretted. 

“It’s just that, you pretend to be all grouchy about Lance, but you guys are, like, friends,” Hunk said catching up with Keith as he walked out of the law library. “Friends with—”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” Keith said warningly, pushing open the front doors to the library and exiting out into the cool desert night. 

“I guess it wouldn’t  _ benefit _ me to do that,” Hunk joked following close behind Keith, who shot him a dark look. “I couldn’t help myself. But seriously, you and Lance are—”

“Just… friends,” Keith faltered, stumbling on his words. They didn’t feel true in his mouth, like he was forcing a definition on their relationship, or lack thereof. He almost wanted to take it back, but he knew that Hunk would never let him live down not being certain of what Lance and him were to each other. It was worth the awkwardness just not to deal with Hunk’s nitpicking.

“Yeah, uh huh, I’m sure,” Hunk nodded knowingly, not looking the least bit convinced. “Well you’re coming anyway. You gotta,” Hunk said as Keith went to protest. “It’s one party, you’ve studied enough, you can study more tomorrow. And maybe,  _ just maybe _ , you might have a good time.” 

“Doubtful,” Keith frowned, looking down at the sidewalk as they walked off campus in the direction of Keith’s apartment. “Hunk I’m just not a party guy. I’m a stay home and play video games in sweatpants kind of guy.” 

“Not that that doesn’t sound like fun, but like, Keith… free booze,” Hunk said in a reasoning tone. “And you get to relax and dance and drink and Lance will be there…” 

“Is that supposed to entice me?” Keith said side eyeing Hunk. 

“Is it working?” Hunk asked with a smirk. 

Keith mulled the thought over as he walked. Was it working? Initially he had to ask himself if Lance being somewhere changed the implication of going. Did that mean they were going to hook up? Or were they going to just hang out as friends, as he had so awkwardly put it a few seconds ago. 

There was the very real possibility that he was the only one thinking that them both hanging out at a party with the involvement of alcohol automatically meant that there was going to be any sexual tension between them. To be perfectly honest, Keith wasn’t even sure if it was sexual tension between them in first place. It was entirely possible that Keith habitually hooked up with Lance because he’d never really done anything with anyone else, and Lance hooked up with him because Keith was easy. Or at least, he considered himself easy, when it came to Lance. 

Something about the casual way Lance spoke to him, with easy grins and direct words that made Keith feel comfortable, but at the same time put him on edge. Like he wasn’t supposed to be feeling this ok around someone, not him. Keith, who barely had friends until college, shouldn’t have someone who could coax him into such a sense of security that he found himself agreeing to do things he’d never thought he’d do. 

“Ok fine,” Keith sighed. “I’ll go.” 

“Awesome!” Hunk cheered, clapping Keith hard on the back, making him trip over his feet. “Sorry about that, but I promise it’s gonna be fun. We’ll stop by you place so you can change, and then we’ll grab some burgers at that grill across the street from your place before we head to the party.” 

“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” Keith asked looking down at his clothes. He wore a pair of skinny black sweatpants that rode a bit low on his waist, exposed by the white t-shirt that said “The Truth Is Out There” in thick, black lettering. 

“It’s not party clothes, Keith,” Hunk said earnestly.

“Ugh,” Keith rolled his eyes with a heavy groan. “Partying doesn’t seem worth the effort.”

* * *

 

An hour and a half later, after having showered and changed and changed and changed just for Hunks approval, Keith finally arrived at the party he didn't want to go to in the first place. Wearing Hunk–approved party appropriate clothes, that Keith was pretty sure was just a pair of black jeans and a burgundy t–shirt that Lance had left at his place over the course of the past year, Keith felt marginally uncomfortable as he and Hunk climbed the stairs to the house. 

It looked exactly like how Lance had described in his text: big, blue, with a giant tree split in half in the front lawn. There were always dozens of people spilling out of the house into the cool desert night, roaming across the lawn, distributing red solo cups like communion. The thick, thumping sound of the music could be felt in their chests as they walked up the stairs to the front door, squeezing past a myriad of people either kissing or arguing on the front porch. 

Inside only grew worse, with the smell of cheap booze and cheaper perfumes, mixed with the distant scent of weed and too many people in one room. The music was loud enough that people had to lean in close to each other’s ears to talk, and they lights were dim enough that it made navigation difficult through the crowded house. Everywhere around Keith people were laughing and talking and dancing and drinking and smoking and kissing and fighting and it was all incredibly overwhelming for him. 

“Yo, we should go find Lance,” Hunk practically yelled into Keith’s ear. 

“What?” Keith said back, trying to be heard over the music. 

“I said, we should go find Lance,” Hunk repeated, standing even closer and talking even louder into Keith’s ear. 

“Oh ok,” Keith nodded finally understand him. Lifting himself to up on his tiptoes, his eyes did a quick scan of the room, looking for any sign of that flawless hair and cocky grin. When he came up short, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of disappointment. “Where is he?” he asked, leaning up to yell into Hunk’s ear. 

“Probably in the kitchen,” Hunk said back motioning with his head for Keith to continue following him through the congested house. 

Keith squeezed and pushed past person after person, each apology becoming more and more half hearted each time he had to shove another drunken student out of his way. By the time that Keith landed in the kitchen, he had lost sight of Hunk. Twisting his head back and forth, Keith furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to look around the group of people playing beer pong in the middle of the room on the kitchen island, but he still couldn’t see Hunk. 

“Well what do you know? Look who actually showed up,” Lance’s voice cooed from behind him. The shiver that went down Keith’s spine was entirely involuntary and he cursed his body for having a reaction that he didn’t approve of. Lance circled around to face him, a cocky grin plastered across his face. It almost took away from the tight, cropped navy tshirt and white acid washed jeans he wore. Almost. 

“Yeah,” Keith began, his voice much lower and thicker than he’d intended. “Hunk convinced me to come.” 

“Oh well, then I guess I gotta thank him,” Lance smirked, tucking his thumbs into his front pockets, taking a sexy, relaxed stance that Keith found irritatingly attractive. “Where is the big lug anyway?” He stretched his back to look around the game of beer pong giving an uninterrupted view of his long, tan neck. Images of Keith running his tongue along the lines of his neck and sinking his teeth into the juncture at the bottom ran through his head faster than he could process them. “Keith?” 

“What—yes?” Keith stumbled, snapping himself out of whatever horny haze he was in. 

“I asked you where was the last place you saw him,” Lance repeated. 

“Oh um, when we were walking over here to the kitchen,” Keith began, purposefully looking away from Lance pretending to scan the room. “He was right—”

“Hunk! Hey!” Lance shouted, waving over Keith’s head. “Over here!” 

“—there,” Keith finished, turning his head to see Hunk walking over to where they were, holding what looked like a case full of beers by the bottle necks in his fingers. 

“Hey sorry sorry sorry, Rolo asked me to bring him beers from the cooler I’ll be back in one second, I just gotta find Shay first,” Hunk said as he squeezed through, holding the beers above everyone’s heads. 

“And there he go,” Lance chuckled watching Hunk exit the kitchen. “For such a big guy, he’s really fast. So nimble.” 

“Yeah,” Keith said with a half smile. 

“But anyway,” Lance continued, turning back to him, leveling the full force of his heavy lidded confident grin at Keith. “I’m glad you’re here.” 

“You are?” Keith said hoping that his question sounded more playful than actually, genuinely curious. Lance’s grin grew and he seemed to take a small step closer to Keith. Even though they were in a crowded and loud kitchen with music blaring and people shouting, Lance made him feel like he was the only other person in the room.There was something about all that attention...

“Yeah,” Lance nodded, raising his eyebrow invitingly. “I got something I need your help with actually.” Keith could tell where this was going; Lance had used that line on him before. 

_ Oh Keith I have a big problem and only you can fix it.  _

_ I need your help unloading something, wanna come back to my place to and take my load?  _

_ Keith, can you help me come… to a decision?  _

They weren’t all great but they all led to the same conclusion. After two years of pun filled propositions, bad pick-up lines, and sexually charged conversations, Keith was still surprised they both: one, still worked on him, and two, were even needed. Couldn’t they just a agree to fuck like adults? 

“Can you wingman for me tonight?” Lance asked, looking hopeful. 

“Yeah Lance, I’ll— wait what,” Keith said registering what Lance said. His eyes scanned Lance’s face to see if he was joking but for all his jesting and puns, he looked completely genuine. “You… you want  _ me _ to be your wingman.”

“Yeah,” Lance nodded enthusiastically. 

“Like, talk about you in a positive way so that someone else would find you attractive,” Keith said slowly, as if he was learning the concept as he was saying it. 

“Yeah, exactly,” Lance nodded again. 

“Why,” Keith asked flatly. 

“Because, I…” he sighed, like he was about to admit something he was embarrassed about. “So I’ve been talking with Nyma for a while now, and I really like her and I think, if I can get a good wingman, maybe she’ll see what a catch I am.” Each word drained more and more color from Keith’s face. “Like me and her are cool and stuff, like we’re friends, but I think she just needs that confidence boost that comes from a sane person’s stamp of approval. That’s where you come in.” 

“Right,” Keith said, his voice lower and thicker than before. 

“You just gotta be all,  _ Oh Lance is so cool and I’m really picky about my friends so since I’m friends with Lance you know he’s a good guy, _ or something like that, I’ll leave the exact minutia to you,” Lance said patting Keith on the shoulder. 

“Right,” Keith repeated, feeling incapable of saying or thinking any other words. 

“Lit,” Lance grinned. “So yeah, she went to the bathroom, heads up I’ve been chatting her up for the past hour, telling her that you were coming and that you’re all smart and cool so she’s all warmed up to you already.” On any other day those words would have sent a hot pang coursing through his body, but in that moment Keith only felt cold. “Oh wait, there she comes— Hey! Nyma! Over here!” 

“Hey Lance,” Nyma said walking into the kitchen and over to them, pushing aside her long dyed blonde hair as maneuvered her way over. “Oh hey Keith you made it.” 

“Yeah,” Keith said, trying not to sound disappointed. “I just got here.” 

“Lance was telling me that you were coming. He seemed more excited for you to be here than me to be honest,” Nyma teased, nudging her shoulder against Lance, who blushed lightly. Keith felt like he wanted to vomit. 

“Nah, no way,” Lance smiled at her in a way Keith never had seen before; it was soft and sweet, and it looked pure with no other ulterior motive than just continuing to be happy in her presence. Keith felt like he had just stumbled and fallen, not quite able to find his footing again. 

“Right,” Nyma said jokingly faking skepticism at Lance. “So,” she continued, “can I get you a drink Keith? I know where Rolo staches the good stuff, not the shitty beer everyone else is drinking.” 

“Sure,” Keith nodded, only looking up at her briefly before becoming overwhelmed by anxiety and needing to look down at his hands. 

“Ok, I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere fun without me,” Nyma said lightly to Lance as she took a step away. 

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Lance grinned, watching her go until she was out of sight down the stairs to the basement. Immediately he threw his head back and let out a low whistle. “Holy shit she’s hot.”   
“She’s… very pretty, yeah,” Keith forced himself to say, in the least bitter way possible. 

“I mean, she’s like a engineering major with a psychology minor? She’s so smart? Why is that so crazy hot?,” Lance asked like he was genuinely asking Keith. 

“Why indeed,” Keith said under his breath. 

“And also like, have you seen her face? Ugh, gorgeous,” Lance exhaled, clutching his chest. “That long hair, and her soft laugh and that—”

“I got it, you’re attracted to her. It is understood,” Keith interrupted, putting his hand up to stop Lance from continuing. 

“Sorry,” Lance laughed sheepishly. “I just really feel like we could have something you know? Me and her.” 

“You do?” Keith asked less like a question and more like an accusation. 

“Yeah,” Lance nodded enthusiastically, Keith’s tone completely going over his head. “So you’ll help me out right? You’ll be my wingman?” 

A thousand thoughts went through Keith’s head but there was one he could grab onto:  _ why me?  _ Not just why him as in, why would Lance choose him but also why him like, why did this have to happen to him. Why did Lance, they only person Keith had ever felt—well he still wasn’t exactly sure what he felt, but it was something— have to ask him to sit there and talk him up to someone else so that he could go home with that someone else. How could Lance ask him to do that, to be hostage as he flirted and joked and teased with someone else right in front of him, like they hadn’t been doing the exact same thing only hours before. 

He briefly considered saying no. Letting the chips fall as they may, not wanting to get involved with Lance’s plans to woo someone else. Keith didn’t want to watch Lance flirt with someone else, and someone as annoying beautiful as Nyma no less. He didn’t even want to go to the party in the first place. Yet here he was, facing at least a mortifying hour of watching them giggle and tease, in agonizing proportions. 

But Lance’s eyes looked so hopeful as he waited for Keith’s response. And maybe it was thought that he was already at the party, or the fact that Lance was wearing that intoxicating woody cologne that often lingered on Keith’s pillow for days, or perhaps even just the prospect that he didn’t have to get through the night sober. Maybe it was one or all or none of those things that made him agree.

“Of course,” Keith half smiled, earning wide grin from Lance. “I’ll follow your lead.” 

“You’re the best,” Lance grinned, squeezing Keith’s shoulder, and giving it a light shake for emphasis.

* * *

 

Two jello shots, a rum and coke, and half a beer later and Keith wasn’t feeling any less uncomfortable with the current situation than he had over an hour and a half ago. He sat on a patio chair, with a disgustingly warm abandoned beer in hand, sandwiched between two of the loudest bro’s he’d ever met, watching Lance and Nyma make googly eyes at each other on the other side of the deck table. And he was done. Beyond done. He was done half an hour ago, now he was just over done. 

Being Lance’s wingman was a lot more draining than he’d originally thought. It wasn’t that he couldn’t come up with positive things to say about Lance— that he could do fairly easily for some reason. No, it was saying those things to Nyma, with as straight a face as possible, and then watching her coo over him for a few minutes until it all started again. 

“So Keith,” Nyma began, for what felt like the hundredth time that night. “Lance told me before that you fix hard drives?” 

“Uh, yeah,” Keith nodded, tracing the lines of condensation on the side of his beer bottle. “I’ve always been pretty good with tech and computers and stuff, so I do it on the side. It pays for my apartment so…” he shrugged noncommittally, glancing at Lance who was looking at him expectantly. “Oh. But um, Lance, uh he's a ocean engineering major.”

“Yeah I know,” Nyma said sharing a brief look with Lance that Keith couldn't read. “He's very smart.” She ran her fingers slowly through Lance's hair, looking at him with a fond smile. 

“Thanks,” he grinned, as his hair fell back into place as her hands pushed through it. Keith was completely over done. 

“I'm tired,” he said, giving no indication that it was anything other than an excuse to leave. “I have work to do tomorrow so I'm going to go now.”

“Wait, now? So soon?” Lance asked brushing off Nyma’s hand from his head. 

“Yeah,” Keith said flatly, setting aside his flat, warm beer. Pushing his chair back with some difficulty, Keith got up and pushed his chair in. Realizing that he was a bit more drunk than he'd originally thought, Keith steadied himself with a hand on the small table before giving them a brief wave. Keith set out to circle around the house so he wouldn't have to drunkenly push his way through the crowded rooms to get out the front door. 

“Hey Keith! Wait up!” he heard Lance's voice call out from behind him as he struggled with the chain on the gate. Sighing heavily, Keith turned around and watched Lance jog over to him. “Hey, w–why are you leaving so early?” he asked, his voice a bit caught from the exertion. 

“Because I said, I have uh, um, work to do. Lots of work,” Keith said lamely, as his fingers thumbed at the chain on the gate. 

“Well let me at least walk you home,” Lance offered, leaning forward and unlatching the chain for him. “You've been drinking, I should make sure you get home ok.”

“I'm not drunk,” Keith lied, trying to sound as sober as possible. Lance didn't look like he was buying it. “Besides,” he pushed open the gate and took a step backwards through it, “I actually live fairly close. I'll be fine. Go back to Nyma. She probably can't wait to get her hands back on you.” He internally winced at what he said but it hadn't seemed to phase Lance. 

“Ye–yeah, ok,” Lance nodded, his voice sounding thin and cracked. “I'll go back to Nyma. And you'll…” he just gave Keith a look he couldn't read, “be careful getting home.”

“I will,” Keith nodded, taking another step backwards. 

“I can go get Hunk if you want?” Lance suggested inching just slightly forward. 

“I'm perfectly fine on my own,” Keith said taking another step away. “Don't bother Hunk, he's flirting with Shay.”

“....I'm….ok fine,” Lance agreed reluctantly. 

“Go….go back to Nyma,” Keith said with a degree of distaste as he took another step backwards. “She really seems to like you.”

“Yeah,” Lance exhaled, giving Keith a look he was not sober enough to read. “Get home safe.”

“I will,” Keith said turning around and walking across the front lawn. 

He navigated through several drunken bros tossing around what appeared to be deflated and horribly misshapen football in an attempt to impress a gaggle of drunken, droopy looking college girls who had draped themselves across the porch. Ducking a particularly bad toss from an extremely drunk bro who wore not only one, but two polos layered atop his gray cargo shorts, Keith managed to reach the freedom and safety of the sidewalk completely unscathed. 

Despite telling Lance how close he lived, he knew it was at least a 20 minute walk. A drunken 20 minute walk done somewhere on the later side of 12:30 am. Rubbing sobriety into his face, Keith shuffled along the chilly desert night streets heading out of the quiet suburbia and towards the distant hum of downtown. 

He arrived at his building on the outskirts of downtown, 20 minutes soberer and a hell of a lot more tired. Just as he reached for the building door, it swung open, almost smacking him right in the face with the metal framing. Keith jumped back, startled and made dizzy by the sudden movement. 

“Oh shit, I'm so sorry,” said a soft, high voice. 

Massaging the sides of his forehead, Keith winced at the throbbing in his head as he looked up at the person in front of him. It took him a second to process that he recognized the kind of short brunette girl in front of him, and second later to recognize that she was his hall neighbor, and a few more seconds to recognize her as a classmate. It took yet another few seconds before he realized she was speaking to him. 

“I'm sorry what?” Keith said asking for her to repeat what she had said. 

“I asked if you were ok, did I hit you hard? I'm so sorry,” she said placing her hands on his arms in a comforting and still somehow nervous manner. 

“No you, uh, you didn't hit me,” Keith said lowering his hands from the sides of his head. “I just have a headache and moving back fast made me dizzy.”

“Oh gosh I'm so sorry,” she said immediately, sounding like she meant it. “But I'm glad I didn't hit you Keith .”

“Yeah,” Keith agreed somewhat awkwardly, realizing he could not remember her name. “Right so, um, I'm gonna go up to my apartment now.”

“Right of course,” she stepped aside to let him into the small vestibule before the second door into the lobby. “Goodnight Keith,” she waved to him giving him a bright smile as she took a step away. 

“Goodnight,” Keith said feeling awkward. He briefly watched her walk away before turning around and heading for the elevator. 

Once inside the elevator, Keith let out the heavy exhale he hadn’t realized he need to let out. The combination of almost drunk and some other emotion Keith couldn’t pinpoint left him feeling drained and oh so tired. He knew he should have just stuck to his guns and not gone to the party like he had wanted. He had let himself get taken in by the thought of Lance and seeing him and talking with him and possibly ending the night the way most of their interactions ended— covered in sweat from exertion and deeply satisfied. But that was not how the night went, not even close. 

Keith wasn’t even sure why the turn of events had bothered him so much, especially because he hadn’t wanted to go in the first place. The thought needled at him as he unlocked his front door and shuffled into his bedroom. He had no real claim on Lance, if anyone could have that sort of thing. There was no reason that he had to assume that he and Lance had anything more than a strange, tentative friendship that was held together by a mutual desire to have frequent and, if possible, good orgasms, and a laziness that kept them from seeking such things elsewhere. Or at least that’s what Keith had thought. 

Apparently Lance had no problem finding or at least looking for that elsewhere. And apparently Nyma was where he had placed his area of focus. Keith tried to convince himself that it didn’t bother him as he forced down two glasses of water and an aspirin. He tried to tell himself that Lance had no loyalty to him and could therefore talk to and flirt with and hookup with whomever he wanted. Keith repeated that to himself as he crawled into bed. Telling himself that feeling however he was feeling was stupid and unfounded because he and Lance were nothing more than fuck buddies, as Pidge had put it. 

The dark room lit up in a soft white glow from his phone that lay face up on the desk next to his bed. Keith turned his head to look at the small glowing box until the light faded, dropping the bedroom back into darkness again. Hoping it was nothing important, Keith went to turn his head back to staring at the ceiling when his phone lit up for a second time. With a heavy, resigned sigh, he reached for it, lowering the brightness before bringing it close to his face. 

There were two text notifications on the home screen. The name made his gut clench uncomfortably. 

**Lance: hey, let me know if you got home safe** **  
** **Lance: if you’re already asleep just text me in the morning**

Deciding it was better to answer him now, than send a text that would be received during some post–coitus breakfast between him and Nyma, Keith typed out a brief response. 

**Keith: i’m home.**

He barely thought about it before he typed out a second message, his bitterness out typing his conscience. 

**Keith: don’t forget to wear a condom.**

Keith watched as his messages went to Read immediately and he just waited for the incoming message, watching the small gray ellipses dance at the bottom of his screen as Lance typed.  

**Lance: ha. I never forget.**

Somehow the small exchange between them didn’t lighten Keith’s mood—it only seemed to darken it. Exhaling, he locked the phone without responding, and placed it face down on the desk next to him. Keith turned over onto his side on the bed, making sure to face away from the phone. And pushing out all thoughts of Lance, he fell asleep. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaahhh i'm so glad people are enjoying this story!!! your comments are great!!!   
> on a less fun note, more angst lol

* * *

When Keith awoke, he had two things on his mind. One, that he was going to need the biggest cup of coffee to get for studying for his test the next day, and two that he was going to need a very cold shower to get rid of the hardon he just woke up with. As the last vestiges of his dream slipped away leaving only traces of images of soft, tan skin fading into the distinct yet distant scent of a woody cologne that filled Keith’s nose. He knew it was all but useless to pretend he hadn’t dreamt of Lance after falling asleep forcing thoughts of him and Nyma out of his mind, which led him to the situation he was in now.

But Keith was determined to ignore it; he wasn’t about to let Lance fill all his thoughts. And he went about his morning. Keith got up out of bed, shuffled over to the bathroom, and began his morning routine. He used the toilet, brushed his teeth, washed his face, took as cold of a shower as his body could stand, and then towel dried his hair as he looked for anything that was clean. He kicked through the pile of clothes on his floor and searched in the closet until he found something that was relatively clean and comfortable. Keith pulled on a black and white hoodie over a white t-shirt, and put on the cleanest joggers he could find.

Dressed, tired, in need of coffee, and ready to spend his day studying and fixing hard drives, Keith left his apartment and headed for the coffee shop. He glanced at his phone, ignoring the texts from Hunk and Pidge for the moment, and looked at the time. 10:06am. Just early enough to get through a good portion of his study material but late enough where he knew he had slept in. Surprisingly, after forcing himself not to think about what a nightmare the previous night was, Keith actually felt a lot better as he pushed the door open to the coffee shop.

“Oh, good morning Keith!” 

He had felt better. Until that moment. 

“Oh,” Keith blinked, taking in the sight of cheerful, excitable Lance from behind the counter, his cream colored apron tied neatly around his waist over his jeans and soft looking blue sweater with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows. “Hi Lance.” 

“Hey,” Lance beamed at him, leaning over the clear space on the counter between the two registers. 

Keith approached the counter, wishing he had just made coffee at home or at least remembered Lance’s schedule. Involuntarily his eyes swept up Lance, from his hands that were splaying out on the counter he was leaning on, up his forearms, up his long neck where the collar of his sweater was just big enough to reveal the wayward tag sticking out behind his neck, and all the way to his face which was looking at Keith was warm, happy expression. Even through the heavy, thick scent of coffee, Keith could smell the woody cologne, that he remembered still lingering on his pillow. It almost made him dizzy. 

“Can I get a large coffee please,” Keith said, his voice a lot thicker than he’d anticipated it being. Lance hadn’t seemed to notice, he only gave him a brief smile and a nod before going over to the machines and grabbing a large cup. He stood, feeling awkward as he watched Lance quickly prepare his drink and place it on the counter before ringing it up. Keith thumbed his debit card in his pocket, staring at Lance’s fingers, wondering where they had been the night before. 

“That’s $2,” Lance said breaking Keith out of his thoughts mercifully. “Or $1.50 if I get a kiss?” he grinned. 

“I’ll pay the full $2,” Keith grimaced, handing over his debit card. 

“Suit yourself,” Lance shrugged, swiping the card. “I thought I’d give the D-iscount.”

“The D-iscount?” Keith repeated, raising his eyebrows quizzically as he took back his card and stuffed it into his wallet.  

“Yeah, a discount for people who are getting the D,” Lance smirked. “The D-iscount.” 

“Give that discount out often?” Keith said with more bite than he’d planned. He could see the smirk falter on Lance’s face. 

“I—”

“Bye Lance,” Keith said grabbing the coffee cup, pivoting in place, and heading for the door. He didn’t even look behind him as he stepped out of the coffee shop and started down the block, back towards his building. 

Despite the coffee being warm and delicious, Keith had a bad taste in his mouth. An uncomfortable feeling that he couldn’t quite place crawled up his spine and dug into his muscles, spreading across his back and up his neck. He tried to shake off the gnawing feeling of annoyance and irritation but he found that he only grew more uncomfortable. 

Why would Lance talk to him like that? Especially after he forced him to watch as he flirted with someone else in front of him. What would make him think that Keith would want to engage in anything remotely sexual with him, hours after he had sex with someone else? Keith rolled his neck back and forth, trying to come up with a logical reason for feeling so annoyed at Lance. But he was coming up short. 

A deep, whispering part of him told Keith that he was jealous, but he couldn’t pinpoint on what exactly. Was he jealous of Lance, and his ability to get people to be interested in him, and want to sleep with him? Possibly. Keith was an antisocial virgin when he started college, and he had assumed that he would stay that way until he met Lance. Could he have been jealous of Lance getting to hook up with someone as cool and interesting and beautiful as Nyma? Not entirely unlikely. Keith knew he was gay, but he could admit he had the occasional attraction to women, and Nyma was as good as any to be the exception to the rule. Was he jealous that he wasn’t the one who hooked up with Lance?

That thought made him stop in his tracks as he was unlocking the door to his apartment. It had been an idea that he had been circling for a while but he never had the guts to think it as a full thought. It felt like he was admitting something by thinking that—something he wasn’t ready to or even wanted to admit, to himself or anyone else. 

There was a certain level of jealousy that Keith had felt watching Lance flirt with Nyma. Keith attributed it his naive assumption that it would have been him Lance would be talking up all night to end up in his pants. But perhaps it was something else, something more than that. 

_ There was something about all that attention… _

Keith shook his head, snapping himself out of that thought process. He was being ridiculous. It was obvious that he was annoyed because he didn’t feel like being the next notch on Lance’s bedpost, not anymore. He didn’t like feeling like a conquest; like something that could be just quantified and categorized as insignificant in the scheme of things. It made him feel mad and uncomfortable and upset and several other things that he couldn’t quite place. All he knew was the thought of Lance treating him like just another person he hooks up with made him feel sick. 

With distaste on his tongue and regret filling his lungs, Keith started in his studying hoping that the focus would clear his mind. 

When Keith walked out of his exam the next day, he felt the weird, dizzying combination of relief of it being over and residual stress from having to take it. As he pulled the strap of his bag over his shoulder and walked out of the large lecture room, he rolled his neck trying to release some of the tension that had built up there while he had been taking his test. But he still felt on edge.

* * *

 

“So how’d you think you did?” Hunk asked when Keith walked over to where he had been lounging in the couches outside in the hallway. 

“I think… I passed,” Keith shrugged, tossing his bag on the couch across from where Hunk was laying down. He dropped himself onto the seat, turning so he could lay back, leaning his head on one armrest and putting his feet up on the other. 

“Well that’s good,” Hunk said picking up his phone from where he had it resting on his belly. “You want to hang out for a bit? I have like 2 hours to kill before my next class.”

“Nah, I’ve got like 3 hard drives to fix back at my apartment,” Keith sighed. “So it’s either fix them and get paid or my electric goes off.” 

“Fair enough,” Hunk nodded as he texted something very quickly. “So,” he placed his phone back on his belly and turned his head to look at Keith, who had his head tipped back with his eyes closed, “I heard you left early from the party? I texted you but you never responded.” 

“Oh yeah,” Keith said not sure how to navigate through this. “Sorry, I should’ve told you that I was leaving. I just um, needed to go home.” 

“That’s cool,” Hunk said. “I just wanted to make sure you got home ok, Lance said you ran out pretty fast. I got worried, especially when you were all silent yesterday.” 

“Sorry,” Keith said feeling bad that he had ignored his friend’s texts. “I didn’t mean to make you worry.” 

“Don’t do it again,” Hunk said wagging his finger at Keith with a facetious parent voice.

“Ok mom,” Keith chuckled softly. He tilted his head back, and closed his eyes, trying to relax and release some of the exam tension that had built up in his body. “Oh crap,” Keith said remembering something. “I left my jacket in the library this morning, I gotta go get it.”

“Oh if you’re going to the library I’ll walk you over,” Hunk said swinging his legs off the couch and onto the floor. “Maybe I’ll hang out in there. Get some studying done, bother Pidge, the usual stuff.” 

“Sure,” Keith nodded, getting up off the couch and grabbing his bag. 

They walked towards the library in comfortable silence, occasionally talking about their assignments and upcoming midterms. Mostly, Keith was glad to have a nice, calm, non–Lance centered conversation with Hunk. He almost felt like all the stress and anxiety that was stored in his shoulders and neck, were melting away with each passing step. 

Normally, when Keith was stressed he would— not exactly seek out Lance— but make sure he was somewhere where Lance would find him, such as the coffee shop Lance worked at, or the small student lounge outside Lance’s favorite lab. Then he would just wait for the inevitable sexually charged suggestion and then proceed in doing his favorite stress reducing activity. But now, the thought of seeing Lance, especially after sitting there at that party watching him flirt and giggle with Nyma, even helping him look good in front of her so he could sleep with her, it made Keith feel ten times more stressful than an exam. He did not want to see Lance. 

It was almost comical the way that as Keith had that fleeting thought just as he walked into the library, he saw Lance. He was still dressed in his usual coffee shop uniform of black t-shirt and black jeans, and was sat on top of a table, leaning back on his hands as he chatted with Nyma, sending her his most attractive grins. Needless to say, the thought to immediately turn around popped into Keith’s head instantly as he crossed the threshold. But he wasn’t quick enough.

“Hey Keith! Hi Hunk,” Lance called out to them, leaning on one hand and waving to him with the other. Keith watched him dip his head closer to Nyma to lean into her ear to whisper something, before pushing himself off the table and sauntering over to Keith and Hunk. “I didn’t know you were working at the library this afternoon?” Lance asked Keith tilting his head to the side and stuffing his hands into his front pockets. 

“I’m not,” Keith said flatly, moving around him and continuing through the library and towards the back employee room. He could hear Lance tell Hunk he’d be right back before he heard the sound of his quick pace moving to catch up with him. 

“So what’s up? Why are you here?” Lance asked falling into step with Keith. 

“I needed to get my jacket,” Keith said, not bothering to look up at the bright, open face he just knew Lance was looking at him with. 

“Oh and here I thought you just came to see me,” Lance grinned, pretending to push back his long fictitious hair. “You know that my study group meet here on Mondays, I’m pretty sure you’re here just for little ol’ me.”  

“Definitely not,” Keith huffed dryly, pulling out his school ID to swipe into the door of the employee room at the back of the library. 

“Ooh someone’s being extra bristly with me today. ” Lance accused leaning against the doorframe as Keith walked over to the small table and grabbed his red jacket off the back of one of the chairs. “Is this from stress or just regular Emo Keith stuff, because you know, one of those is fixable.” 

“Oh really? And how do you suppose I fix it?” Keith asked with annoyance. 

“Well,” Lance smirked. “I have a few suggestions. Several of which include you and me and a—”

“You know what I’m gonna stop you right there,” Keith said putting his hand up. “I’m not interested in whatever you’re about to suggest.”

“Um ok,” Lance said looking slightly taken aback. 

“If I was just looking to get laid, I would have just said so,” Keith said annoyedly. He watched confusion cross Lance’s face. “I’m not sure why you would even think I would want that after Saturday, honestly.”

“I—I’m sorry,” Lance stuttered looking lost. 

“Look,” Keith took a deep breath, and placed his hand on his hip, hoping that he could figure out how to phrase the dozens of thoughts racing around in his head. “I’m glad you got to hook up with Nyma and whatever, but I’m not sure why you would think I’m that desperate to have sex with you that I would just completely forget that you made me help you get laid like, two days ago.” He let out a breathy, humorless laugh. “I mean, how pathetic do you think I am?” 

“I—are you… are you jealous?” Lance asked looking at him incredulously. 

“Of you? No. I’m gay,” Keith said baffled that Lance would even suggest that. 

“So you’re just mad that I...what? Hook up with people besides you?” Lance questioned. 

“You are so full of yourself, do you even hear yourself when you talk? Like at all?” Keith said pointing angrily at his ear. 

“I don’t hear you denying it,” Lance shrugged. 

“Unbelievable,” Keith huffed. “Well then listen very carefully,” Keith took a leering step forward, “I’m not jealous of you at all. If you want to sleep around, that’s your business. Just because you do, doesn’t make you special or anything.” 

“Hmm, it still sounds like you’re jealous that you’ve only had sex with me and you’re not the only person I’ve ever fucked,” Lance said crossing his arms across his chest bitterly. 

“Wow,” Keith scoffed. “Ok first of all, I could go out right now and find someone to have sex with me. It’s that easy ok. There’s a difference between not doing something and not being able to do something. I’m very able.” 

“Then why don’t you?” Lance suggested, throwing his arms in the air. “Why don’t you go and find someone else if it’s that damn easy?” 

“Um, because I have like, real things to do?” Keith said annoyed. 

“Hmm, see it just sounds like you’re just too much of a chicken shit to actually go up to someone and talk to them with the intention of fucking their brains out,” Lance said smirking. “Well, someone that’s not me of course.” 

“Oh, please. Get over yourself,” Keith rolled his eyes. “I could talk to and bed a thousand more people than you can. I’m just too busy actually doing my work to bother in your quest for every STD on this campus.” 

“Really? I bet you can’t,” Lance said smugly. 

“Excuse me?” Keith said flatly. 

“I bet that you can’t even go up to one person and actually do that,” Lance smirked. “Like literally approach them and chat them up enough that they want to sleep with you. I bet you absolutely cannot do it.” 

“Really? You’re really gonna make a bet?” Keith scoffed. Lance only nodded. “Fine,” Keith said tightly. “I bet I can not only do it once, but five times.” 

“Oh ho ho, straight off the bench and he thinks he can hit a homerun on his first time at the bat,” Lance chuckled. “No honey, don’t kid yourself.” 

“And I bet,” Keith continued, raising his voice slightly and taking a menacing step forward, “that I can do it before you.”

“Is this a race? Because if so you’re going to lose,” Lance said glaring at Keith, leaning forward. 

“Bring it on,” Keith whispered darkly. 

“Oh it’s on,” Lance breathed back. 

“Good,” Keith said stepping back. “First one to five wins.”

“What are your terms?” Lance said, lifting his chin and looking at Keith over the bridge of his nose. “What happens if you win?” 

“If I win…” Keith began, rubbing his fingers thoughtfully against his chin, “I get free coffee from your shop until we graduate.” 

“That’s crazy,” Lance frowned.

“Fine, for the rest of the year,” Keith relented. 

“Hmm… deal,” Lance gave in after a moment. “And if I win?” 

“If you win,” Keith paused as he thought, trying to come up with something he wouldn’t absolutely hate doing. 

“How about if I win I get to drive Rosa?” Lance suggested with a smirk, “for a month.” 

“What, no. Are you out of your mind? I’m not lending you my motorcycle for a month that’s insane,” Keith scoffed. “Besides the fact that I drive her, a lot, you’re like the worst driver ever. You’d crash within a week.” 

“Fine,” Lance frowned. “Three times then. I get to drive her three times. Whenever I want— provided you don’t need to use it of course,” he added quickly.

“Fine,” Keith sighed. “Three times.”

“Deal,” Lance grinned extending his hand out for Keith to shake it. Keith glanced down at it briefly before, shifting his jacket to his left arm and clasping Lance’s hand with his right. 

“Deal.”

* * *

 

Talking to people was much harder than Keith had expected. Sure he understood the basics of having a conversation with someone, and possibly even flirting. But it was the actually getting up and doing it that seemed almost impossible. How could he have made that bet with Lance, if he couldn’t even go up to one person?

He sat, trying not to be obvious in his stares at the tall, good looking, totally out of his league muscular guy who was standing at the opposite end of the mostly empty laundromat. The guy had been folding clothes at a folding station facing Keith for the past 15 minutes, and for 14 of those minutes Keith had been trying to get his feet to just move so he could walk over to the guy and introduce himself. But instead he sat on the cold, terribly uncomfortable, and unnervingly sticky bench along the wall by his dryer, watching the hot guy (as he’d taking to calling him in his head) fold and refold a cart full of towels and sheets over the top of his mostly unread assigned reading. 

Keith swallowed thickly, lowering his gaze to the words on the page even though he couldn’t read any of it. Why did this have to feel so impossible? He’d seen Lance do this a million times, and if Lance could do it, then he certainly could. Or at least that’s what he had tried to convince himself of, and then Pidge the day before, who wasn’t convinced at all. 

“You’re going to fail so miserably,” she had laughed in his face when he told her about the bet at work the next day. “There’s no way you can go up to a guy, successfully flirt with them, take them back to your apartment and fuck them. No way.” 

“Thanks,” Keith frowned, angrily stuffing books onto their correct shelves. “Good to know that not only do you think I’m going to lose this stupid, dumb bet— but you also think that I can’t even have a conversation with someone.” 

“It’s not that I don’t think you can have a conversation with someone,” Pidge said a bit more comfortingly. “It’s that I have a hard time imagining that you’ll be comfortable having random, meaningly sex with someone for the sake of a bet. It just feels out of character for you.” 

“I have random, meaningless sex with Lance all the time,” Keith huffed, giving a particularly hard shove to a volume on reptilian classifications that he had been forcing onto the shelf. 

“Ok two things: one, thank you for finally confirming that,” Pidge grinned, holding up one finger to Keith. “I’m not sure if you’re aware, but you’ve never actually told me, I’ve just inferred all my info. And two, it’s not random, meaningless sex, so it doesn’t count.” 

“Whatever,” Keith scowled, shoving the books to the side to make room for more on the shelf. “So you’re saying that it’s a non-starter, and I’ve basically already lost?” 

“No,” Pidge said placatingly. “I’m saying that it’s just not in your nature to do this and because of that you’ll try but you’ll fail miserably.”

“So I should just call off the bet?” Keith asked glancing at his small friend who was neglecting her cart of books that needed sorting. 

“Oh no, god no. Keep the bet. I want to see the outcome of this, I feel like it’s gonna be hilarious,” Pidge smirked. Keith sent her a particularly dark glare. “I meant, keep the bet. Step out of your comfort zone. Have some fun. Get tested regularly.” 

Pidge’s words rang in Keith’s head as he clandestinely watched the hot guy pack all his laundry into a clean, cloth laundry bag, throw it over his shoulder, and walk out of the laundromat. Keith felt himself exhale heavily and slump into his seat as the door closed behind the guy. Annoyed at himself for not being able to just get up and talk to him, Keith leaned his head back and shut his eyes, trying to push out all thoughts of Lance, the bet, and talking in general. 

“I thought I’d find you here.”

_ There went that plan. _

Opening his eyes, Keith sat up in his seat as his eye’s focused on the figure in front of him. Lance’s tall, lanky body seemed to fill Keith’s entire field of vision. Almost involuntarily Keith’s eye’s quickly raked up and down Lance’s body taking him in. Despite the definite desert night chill, Lance only wore his green hooded jacket over one of his baseball shirts that the bottom was slightly tucked into the front of his jeans. He had an almost self satisfied smirk on his face and Keith briefly wished that he had gone up to the hot guy just so that Lance would have walked in and seen him talking to someone else. 

“And why is that?” Keith said, trying for an air of nonchalance. He adjusted himself in his seat so that it no longer looked like he had been slouching and bemoaning his lack of social skills.  

“Because it’s Wednesday night,” Lance said like it was obvious. “Laundry night.”

“Ah,” Keith nodded. “Should I be concerned that you’ve memorized my habits…?”

“Nah, and it’s for purely self serving reasons anyway,” Lance shrugged. 

“I’m sure,” Keith said closing his book and putting it beside him. “So, to what do I owe the pleasure of a visit from you on laundry night?” 

“I came to bring you this,” Lance said as he pulled out a small, business sized card from his jacket pocket and held it out for Keith to take. 

Glancing skeptically at Lance, Keith reluctantly took the card out of his hand and brought it to his face to get a better look. It was one of the special customer drink counter cards from the coffee shop Lance works at. On the card was his name written in black sharpie by Lance, and it had 5 blank spots for holes to be punched through them. Keith turned it over in his hand as if looking for an explanation. 

“What’s this for?” he asked looking up at Lance. 

“For the bet,” Lance said proudly, sticking his hands in his jacket pockets. Keith only continued to stare at him skeptically. “See you punch a hole in 5 spaces as you… you know…” 

“Hook up with people?” Keith finished. 

“Yeah that,” Lance nodded. “So whoever fills their card first wins.” 

“Or get’s a free medium sized espresso drink for free, valid until June 1st,” Keith said reading the fine print at the bottom of the drink card. 

“Yeah that too,” Lance chuckled. “Also don’t tell my boss that we’re using these for non-drink related activities.” 

“Of course,” Keith sighed, stuffing the card into his back pocket. “Anything else?” he asked, leaning in his seat against the wall behind him, his arms crossed against his chest. 

“Nope, that was it,” Lance shook his head. “Good luck.” And with that, Lance turned and walked out of the laundromat, leaving Keith in a muddled haze of confusion. 

There was no reason for Lance to have given him the card right now; they had an english class together in the morning, he could have waited until then. Lance usually spent that class scrolling through his social media accounts and sending Keith anything from baby animal pictures to memes to randoms photos with the caption “this is you” underneath, with the inevitable suggestive text or sexual innuendo. So in Keith’s mind there was no real explanation as to why Lance had to come looking for him. 

Unless he wanted to catch Keith in action. The thought seemed ridiculous to Keith and yet… it didn’t feel out of character for Lance. It almost made sense. Lance was just incredibly competitive. It totally makes sense that Lance would go looking for Keith, hoping he’d catch him in the act of chatting up some guy; he was trying to check out the competition, play mind games with Keith. But Keith wasn’t going to fall for that. He could careless about how Lance spent his time and if he wanted to obsess over what he was doing then that was fine with him. 

Then again, there was something about all that attention...


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i turned the rating up because of more porn ;)  
> also thank you to everyone who has left comments. they make my day and i love you all
> 
>  
> 
> [****NOW THERE IS FANART****](https://daddyroboarm.tumblr.com/post/158646217833/accordingtomyresearch-the-bet-also-for-ainu)

* * *

Keith’s phone vibrated for the 4th time in as many minutes. He was trying to ignore it and pay attention to the, unfortunately, incredibly boring lecture of the analysis of Madame Bovary and her escapades, but the incessant vibration of his phone was threatening his concentration.  By the sixth vibration, Keith let out a frustrated sigh and pulled out his phone from his backpack. On the screen were six text notifications from Lance.

Annoyed, Keith glanced over at Lance who was sat a few rows below him sitting next to Keith’s pretty short brunette neighbor girl he still hadn’t learned the name of . He looked, by all accounts, like he was completely paying attention to the lecture. But the six notifications on Keith’s phone said otherwise. Locking his phone again, Keith placed it back into his backpack and opened up the imessage app on his macbook.

**Lance: guess who’s about the get that first hole punched**

**Lance: it’s me. *hold for applause***

**Lance: it’s ok to be insanely jealous. Like totally consumed with a jealous rage. It’s cool. Let it out**

**Lance: side note, can you send me the lecture notes for today? I’m not really paying attention**

**Lance: Because i’ve been texting with Florona (the beautiful brunette babe next to me) and she is… hot**

**Lance: i’d send you screenshots of our convo but honestly it’s just too steamy for your innocent virgin eyes.**

Rolling his eyes, Keith typed out a quick response.

**Keith: virgin? Really?**

**Lance: you know what i mean**

**Lance: metaphorically virginal**

Trying his hardest not to scoff aloud, Keith minimized the app and went back to taking notes on the lecture. He could feel his phone vibrate several times during the rest of the class but he wouldn’t even look at the message on his computer. And by the time class had ended, Keith saw the small red bubble of 13 on his messaging app at the bottom of his screen. Ignoring that for now, Keith packed up his bag and headed out of the lecture hall.

“Yo Keith, wait up!” Lance’s voice called out from behind him.

He briefly felt like he had almost gotten away. Keith paused just outside the classroom door, leaning against the wall as his classmates passed by in front of him. Running a hand through his hair, Keith wondered what Lance could possible need from him now.

“Oh there you are,” Lance said coming out of the classroom and joining Keith against the wall. “I thought you’d left.”

“You told me to wait,” Keith said confused.

“Yeah,” Lance nodded. “I just didn’t think you would.”

“What is it Lance?” Keith exhaled, adjusting the strap of his bag.

“Um,” he began as if he wasn’t sure if he would get this far. “I… I don’t have work today. And um, I was wondering if you wanted to just, like you know, hang out?”

“Uh, yeah,” Keith said caught off guard. “Sure… I thought you were gonna get your hole punched though?” he asked, mildly relieved that he wouldn’t have to watch Lance and Florona—now that he knew her name— walk back to his apartment building, and run the risk of hearing them have sex through the walls.

“Um, well,” Lance laughed, rubbing the back of his neck, “as amazing as having my hole punched sounds, things didn’t exactly actually work out with Florona in the end. Didn’t you get my texts?”

“Oh, um I stopped reading them because I was taking notes,” Keith admitted with a shrug. “So I guess you’re not actually as suave as you think.”

“Don’t you worry,” Lance smirked waving him off. “I’m gonna get my hole punched. And gently caressed. And licked if I’m lucky.”

“Don’t be an ass,” Keith said with an involuntary smile. “Let’s go.”

* * *

 

“Is there anything better than a mountain of cheese fries and a big gulp?” Lance said pulling out a particularly gooey fry from the plate they were sharing. He held it high above him, dangling the strings of cheese into his mouth, eating it all with a satisfied moan. Keith just eyed him with a mixture of disgust and interest.

They sat on Keith’s small couch in his living/dining room, eating the aptly described mountain of cheese fries. They each had their own big gulps sat on either end of the low, slightly wobbly coffee table in front of them. Keith, who was trying to find the TV remote somewhere inside the cushions of the couch, was also watching Lance drop fry after fry into his mouth.

“Maybe you could eat like a human?” Keith suggested with a slight grimace as Lance took another fry and did the say motion. “Take human bites.”

“I’m taking Cuban bites,” Lance joked licking his forefinger. “They’re bigger.”

“Yeah, how about you save some for me, huh?” Keith suggested, picking up a few fries and eating them in a much less obnoxious manner than Lance was doing. “We’re supposed to be sharing.”

“ _Of course my darling_ ,” Lance said sarcastically, picking up a fry and holding it up to Keith’s mouth. “Let me feed you, so that I know you’ve gotten your full cheese fry nourishment.”

“I’m gonna bite your fingers off,” Keith said dryly, but the smirk on his face gave away his amusement at Lance’s ridiculousness.

“I’m willing to take that risk,” Lance smirked, wiggling the fries in front of Keith’s face. Squinting his eyes at Lance, Keith leaned forward and took the fries, making sure to lick Lance’s fingers. “Gross.”

“You were warned,” Keith shrugged, taking a sip from his big gulp. “So what now?”

“What do you mean?” Lance asked, twirling the stringy cheese around a particularly soggy fry.

“Well, you wanted to hang out,” Keith said toeing off his shoes and moving to sit so he could lean back against the armrest of the couch. “What now?”

“I don’t know, I was thinking maybe we could watch a movie,” Lance shrugged, covering his mouth with his fingers and his chewed. “Or maybe I could finally get you to watch Buffy?” Keith shook his head. “Ok, not today then, but one day you will cave in.”

“You keep hoping,” Keith said placatingly. “But I actually have one more laptop to clean out so if you wanna give me like 5 minutes to get my virus software into the computer, we can go through all the horrific porn that totally caused the laptop to crash in the first place.”

“Oh my god yes, dude yes. Why didn’t you just lead with that? What the hell man?” Lance said excitedly.

“Ok give me a sec,” Keith laughed setting his cup on the small coffee table. He got up from the couch and walked over to the bin of computers and grabbed the only one left all the way at the bottom. He grabbed the USB that was hanging from a chain on makeshift nail hook on the wall right above the bins and walked back over to the couch where Lance had pushed aside their food to make room for the computer.

“This laptop looks weirdly familiar,” Lance said thoughtfully as he eyed the pink and purple protective laptop case that was covered in various sized kitten stickers.

“Yeah, because it’s the librarian’s laptop, Mrs. Ryner,” Keith said placing it on the coffee table and taking a seat next to Lance on the couch.

“Ah, that makes sense,” Lance nodded. “So what’s wrong with it? Why does it have to get wiped?”

“Well she says that it’s been acting slow for the past few weeks but recently just won’t respond and then a few days ago it completely stopped working,” Keith said as he turned the laptop on. “She says she took it to the geek squad at best buy, but honestly from my experience those guys do the equivalent of “did you try turning it off and then turning it back on?” and they are useless.”

“Wow, tell me how you really feel,” Lance joked. “So what are you gonna do?”

“Well most likely she has a bunch of viruses on her computer and really shitty virus protection,” Keith said typing in the password that was on a post-it note stuck to the screen. “So I have my own malware program that is going to go into her system and tell me everything.”

“Like everything that went wrong?” Lance clarified.

“No, it’s going to tell me everything,” Keith said with a slight smug smirk. “Every file, every visited website, all the keystrokes, everything.”

“...that sounds…”

“Illegal,” Keith finished for him with a nod. “That’s because it is. Well, sort of. Basically I’m hacking into their computer but, with their permission. I wrote the program myself.”

“Note to self, never leave my macbook here,” Lance said miming writing himself a note.

“I wouldn’t go through your things without your permission,” Keith said with a shake of his head. “Besides, like you could hide anything from me,” he scoffed as he plugged in the USB into the laptop.

“Right,” Lance said in a low tone, with almost no smile in his voice. Confused by the sudden change in tone, Keith turned his head to look at Lance, who immediately smiled at him. “So what now?” he said changing the subject. “Do we just sit here or what do we do?”

“We give the program a few minutes to run and then we wait to see what creepy porn inevitably caused this to crash,” Keith said sitting back against the couch. “Now we wait.”

A few minutes turned into over an hour with how slow and messed up the laptop was. They spent the time going through youtube videos mixed with chatting about classes and complaining about professors and classmates. The mountain of fries quickly dwindled down to the last few fries in the bag that Keith gave to Lance because he knew that he always loved to eat them. By the time the program let out a high ding to tell Keith it was done running, he had almost forgotten that he had it going on the computer.

“Alright so let’s see what nasty shit caused this mess,” Keith said scrolling through the flagged things the malware software detected. He hunched over to read the screen better and he could feel Lance leaning forward next to him and reading over his shoulder. “Ah, found it. I knew it. It’s always porn.”

“Whoa,” Lance said reading the section of highly pornographic webpage titles. “That is some seriously kinky shit man. Who knew that librarian was so dirty?”

“I don’t know but I will never be able to look at her the same and she’s my boss,” Keith grimaced as he continued to scroll through the flagged items list. “Wait what does that say? Is the title of that webpage _‘hot asian twink gets pounded in the library stacks_ ’?”

“Holy shit dude, she wants to bang you,” Lance laughed, needling Keith with his elbow. “Dude that’s so wild.”

“Well maybe she wants to bang you too because it there’s a video here called ‘ _young latino is taught a lesson’_ ,” Keith said pointing to another line in the flagged items list. “Also I am not a twink.”

“You’re kind of a twink,” Lance said with small so-so hand gesture.

“You’re a twink,” Keith said faking offense.

“Hey, I am a twunk alright! That is a combination twink and _hunk_ . Get it, _hunk_!,” Lance said quoting a video they had watched earlier. Keith couldn’t help but laugh.  

“Yeah ok twunk,” Keith said facetiously. “I’m gonna try to clean up this computer, it’ll only take me a few minutes. Then we can watch a movie or something.”

“Sure,” Lance nodded. “Here I’ll clean this up,” he said getting up from the couch and picking up the remnants of their food.

“Thanks,” Keith said watching him pick up their garbage from the table.

“No problem,” Lance said bringing the stuff into the kitchen.

In the brief reprieve from Lance’s presence, Keith let out a small exhale. Surprised would be a severe understatement to describe how Keith felt when Lance asked to hang out. Especially since it came so soon after their fight and subsequent bet, and with no sexual comments or propositions included.

Keith actually found himself enjoying the “hang out” time with Lance. He found himself realizing that they actually were friends under all their sexual tension and competitiveness. Friends that made jokes and watched stupid videos and shared food and poke fun at each other.

And all of that went completely out the window as soon as Lance sat back down on the couch, pressed up against Keith, with his arm around the back of him resting on the cushions. The heady, woody cologne that Lance wore filled Keith’s nose and made it impossible for him to concentrate on what he was typing on the computer. The line of warmth from where their bodies were touching felt more like a contact point to a flame, his whole side sending shockwaves throughout is body. He could feel the feather touch of Lance’s hair on his cheek where he was almost resting his chin on Keith’s shoulder. It was all very overwhelming.

“So, are you almost done? Is the computer porn virus free now?” Lance asked, his voice low and hot in Keith’s ear.

“Um, almost,” Keith swallowed, trying to move over slightly without Lance noticing. “This program has to just go in and wipe all the bad files and get rid of the viruses.” He took a chance and turned his head to glance at Lance and immediately regretted it. Lance’s eyes met his over his shoulder and the hint of a grin on his face was enough to churn Keith’s insides.

Keith had the passing thought that Lance tasted sweet before he even realized that he leaned in to kiss him. He wasn’t even sure why or when he decided to, but he knew that as soon as he felt Lance react and kiss back, he was gone. Computer forgotten, Keith twisted around to properly face Lance, settling his hands on either side of his face pulling him closer. He felt Lance’s hands make their way onto his hips, thumbing at the bottom of his shirt as he gently laid him back onto the couch.

The feeling of Lance on top of him was one that was both welcomingly familiar and also mildly concerning. But Keith pushed out all thoughts of their bet and anything else that might tell him that this was a bad idea, and just lost himself in the rhythm of their movements. Lance’s hands slowly, if just a bit hesitantly, made their way up under Keith’s shirt, kneading the skin on his back as he pressed himself closer, fitting their legs together. Keith moaned softly against his mouth dragging his hands down Lance’s chest and around his waist. He placed his hands on Lance’s ass, pulling him down and grinding up against him.

With a shaky breath Lance separated their lips, moving his mouth to rest against Keith’s neck, breathing hot, heavy breaths against his skin. Keith took the moment to ponder for a second what exactly he was doing. There was no way that this was a good idea. Especially after Keith had specifically told Lance he didn’t want to hook up with him and that he wouldn’t even consider it after what happened on Saturday with Nyma. That thought alone was almost enough to turn Keith off completely. Almost.

But Lance began to mouth at his neck, and all thoughts of telling Lance to stop went out the window. In fact he felt himself pulling Lance closer, twisting his head to the side so he had more space to work with. He slid his hands up from Lance’s ass and began pulling up at his shirt. Lance got what Keith wanted and he lifted his head up for a moment, leaning back so he could pull his t-shirt up and off over his head, tossing it on the couch behind him.

For a brief moment they locked eyes and Keith took in their positions; Lance shirtless on top of him, straddling his waist and looking at him like he needed to be told to continue. Breaking their eye contact, Keith leaned up and quickly pulled off his own shirt, tossing it on the floor behind him, not caring where it went. That one motion was what broke the dam.

Their mouths crashed together in a kiss neither was sure who initiated. Keith’s hands found purchase on Lance’s hips, gripping onto the waistband and hastily unbuttoning his jeans. He felt Lance’s fingers dip under the waistband of his joggers, pulling them down along with his briefs to his mid thigh. Keith’s motions stilled for a second breathing into Lance’s mouth as he wrapped his hand around his dick. He messily kissed Lance, pulling his lower lip between his teeth as Lance’s hand began to move on him.

“Do you have—”

“In my room,” Keith answered breathily before Lance could finish his question. “I'll get it in a second just–just,” he cut himself off with a low exhale as Lance thumbed the head of his dick smearing the precum that had gathered there.

“You stay here, I'll get it,” Lance whispered kissing Keith between words. He let go of Keith and moved back, getting up awkwardly from the couch. Holding his unbuttoned jeans up with one hand, Lance walked into Keith’s bedroom.

Keith almost protested to Lance leaving him alone, because part of him knew that if they stopped he'd start to second guess himself. And as he watched Lance shuffle into his bedroom the sudden weight of what they were doing started to fall on him. A particularly infuriating niggle of annoyance that he couldn't even control himself from jumping Lance the moment they were alone.

A frustration that only grew as Lance walked back out from the bedroom, a condom and lube in one hand and the other was holding the open waistband of his jeans. The sight was unfairly attractive especially as Lance bent down and placed the condom and lube on the coffee table and worked down his jeans, leaving him in a pair of charcoal briefs. Keith took in the sight and he kicked off his briefs and joggers off completely.

“Do you want me to—”

“I’ll bottom,” Keith said reaching for the lube before Lance could finish his sentence.

“Oh,” Lance swallowed kneeling onto the couch watching Keith open the lid to the lube and pour some onto his fingers.  “Ok.”

“Here,” Keith said handing Lance the bottle. He took it and held it in his hand moving back so Keith could lay back on the couch. “Keep that open,” Keith breathed, closing his eyes, circling his finger against his rim.

“Sure,” Lance said placing it next to him on the couch. Gently he placed his hands on Keith’s legs, spreading them slightly so he could fit himself between them. “How about you let me?” Lance murmured against the skin on the inside of his legs as he bent down to press a line of kisses up his legs.

Opening his eyes, Keith looked down his body and met Lance’s eyes from where he was currently kissing the inside of his thigh. He removed his finger from inside him and tucked his arm behind him cushioning his head so he had a better view of Lance between his legs. Not missing a moment, Lance reached for the lube and poured some onto his fingers, smearing some onto Keith’s rim.

Getting fingered by Lance actually made Keith briefly question why he turned down Lance’s advancements so many times. Especially when his fingers were joined by his tongue and Keith felt like he was seeing stars. He didn’t know where to put his hands, moving them from entangled in Lance’s hair to gripping onto the couch to occasionally giving his hard cock a few desperate strokes. Eventually they settled behind him, grabbing the back of the armrest he was leaning on.

“Fu—fuck Lance,” Keith moaned, shutting his eyes tightly as Lance’s tongue moved in tandem with the 3 fingers already inside him. “I’m—I’m ready, please just… just fuck me already.”

“Ok,” Lance said throatily, lifting his head up from between Keith’s legs, wiping his mouth with the back of his free hand. “Give me a second.” Slowly withdrawing his fingers from inside Keith, Lance sat up and reached over to the coffee table and grabbed the condom he had left there. Only a bit clumsy, Lance opened the packet with his teeth and then pulled down his briefs with his lubed hand and rolled on the condom onto himself, pulling off Keith’s briefs completely with his other hand and tossing them on the floor behind him. Lance poured out extra lube into his hand and rubbed it all over his dick until he was satisfied that it had enough.

“I’m going to move your leg,” Lance said surprisingly gently, taking Keith’s left leg and moving it so the ankle rested on his shoulder. Inching forward in his knees, Lance placed both of his hands on Keith’s hips, aligning his lubed hole with his dick. “Deep breath,” Lance whispered as he took his dick in hand and pressed it against Keith’s rim.

“Fuc—” Keith said, his voice strangled and tight. He concentrated on the feeling of Lance’s dick breeching him and pushing in achingly slowly. His hands griped onto the fabric of the couch on either side of his head, tightening with each increasing centimeter.

“You good?” Lance asked, his voice now having the same torn and thick quality as Keith’s. He wasn’t completely inside Keith— not by any means— but he was still losing himself in the warmth.

“Yeah just—give me a sec,” Keith nodded, closing his eyes tightly. As he bit his lower lip trying to concentrate the slight pain away, he felt Lance’s hands relax on him. They slid delicately across his skin, tracing imaginary lines and drawing out comfort. Keith’s eye’s fluttered open and he watched Lance bend over slowly and place warm, wet kisses up his torso. “Ok,” Keith breathed. “Ok, you can move.”

“Ok,” Lance murmured against his chest. He placed one last kiss before he moved, holding gently but firmly onto Keith’s ankle on his shoulder with one hand and his hip with another.

The pace was comfortingly slow at first, as if Lance was trying to ease Keith into the motion with long, controlled thrusts. But it very quickly became agonizing, and Keith began to beg for harder, faster fucks. Pushing back his hips to meet Lance at every thrust, Keith gasped for more. Lance was all too eager to fulfill that wish.

His grip on Keith tightened and he began fucking harder into Keith. He lost a bit of his rhythm and accuracy but Keith didn’t care. Everything was hard and fast and it didn’t give him even a second to think. His head was completely consumed with base thoughts of “more” and “harder” with no time to think about “should they” or “this is a bad idea.” As Keith ran his hand up and down Lance’s chest, getting a hold on his shoulders, throwing his head back and melting into the intoxicating mix of pleasure and pain, he let go of all thoughts of anything that wasn’t what he was feeling right then and now.

“I’m—I’m close,” Lance gasped, using his right hand to lift Keith’s hips a bit higher as his pace became more erratic. “Are you—?”  
“Yeah I–I’m almost there just—just a bit… more,” Keith breathed. He quickly moved his right hand down to his dick and began pump himself as he rushed towards his climax. It was only a few last thrusts before Lance bent over cuming, breathing heavily onto Keith’s abdomen.

“Here let me,” Lance whispered, pulling out of Keith slowly, quickly working off the condom and tying it. He put down Keith’s leg and got up just to toss the condom away before coming back and spreading his thighs more so he could get between them better. Moving so he was laying down on his stomach, Lance took Keith’s dick out of his hand and placed his mouth on the head.

“I’m not gonna last,” Keith said leaning up on his elbows to get a better view of Lance below him. “I’m really close.”

“Mhm,” Lance hummed around his cock, his fingers twisting around the base, brushing through the sparse, black, wiry hair. The vibration of his voice was almost enough to send Keith over the edge but it was when Lance’s fingers found their way back into him and rubbed against his prostate that Keith came.

“Shit, I’m sorry,” Keith said once he caught his breath. Lance only shrugged before putting his hand to his mouth without swallowing, and got up from the couch. Breathing heavily, Keith watched him walk into the bathroom and come out a minute later with a hand towel.

“I still can’t swallow,” Lance said with a slight smile in his voice. “I’m not as good as you.” He knelt on the couch and began wiping away the lube and cum that were still on Keith.

“It’s not a skill I’m exactly proud of,” Keith said, surprised at how wrecked his voice was. Lance seemed to have noticed it too because he glanced up at Keith with an expression that made his insides coil like he was already preparing for a second round.

“Ok, you’re all clean now,” Lance said getting up from the couch and grabbing his briefs from the floor as he walked back towards the bathroom. When he came back he was wearing them and Keith couldn’t help but feel disappointed that he wasn’t going to go for round two. “You good to stand?”

“Yeah I’m fine,” Keith said pushing himself up into a sitting position and instantly regretting it. He stood up, a little wobbly on his feet but Lance’s hand was immediately in his to steady him. “Thanks,” he said pulling his hand out from Lance’s; holding his hand during sex was one thing, but there was something about holding it outside of that that felt… like too much.

“Here’s your clothes,” Lance said picking up and handing Keith his clothes from the floor.

“Thanks,” Keith said awkwardly pulling on his briefs and joggers.

Now that the rush of endorphins were quickly fading, Keith couldn’t help but feel inherently unsure of his actions. It was obvious that despite telling Lance that he didn’t want to have sex with him again, he was actually almost incapable of not. A thousand thoughts ran through his head as he pulled on his shirt. What did this mean for their bet? Did it even matter?

Keith avoided looking at Lance and went directly back to working on the computer, which had been done for a while. He couldn’t look at Lance; he felt embarrassed and stupid. If there was a way to tell Lance “I was clearly lying” this had been it. Keith felt pathetic that he couldn’t even last a week without crawling back into Lance’s arms. Barely even a few days after telling him that he didn’t want him, and Keith was all over him. There had to be a reason for it; it couldn’t just be because he’s seemingly incapable of approaching other people— despite what he’d told Lance.

But now the scent of Lance’s cologne was still lingering all over him, and he could still feel the pleasant sting of the mark he’d left on his neck and Keith almost hated himself for feeling good. He hated that he enjoyed the warmth of Lance sitting back down on the couch, pressing his bare chest up against his back as he looked over his shoulder and down at the computer. He hated that his automatic response was to lift his left hand and run it tenderly through Lance’s hair. He hated that he loved the way that Lance’s arms encircled his waist, and that he could back into Lance’s chest and feel so annoyingly happy.

He wanted to stop. To tell Lance that he couldn’t mess with him like this anymore. That he couldn’t just make it obvious that Keith didn’t matter to him and then later make him feel so safe, so comforted. Keith wanted to tell him that he didn’t need Lance to kiss him and hold him and make him feel good; he could find that without him. And yet, there was something about all that attention…


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the responses to this fic have been amazing and you guys are the best.   
> so who's ready for some soft klance?

* * *

“TGIF am I right?” Pidge said lifting herself onto the library's front desk. 

“Yeah I guess so,” Keith shrugged as he continued to type on the library computer, not lifting his head from the stack of papers he was reading from. “I’ve been working all afternoon so it doesn’t really feel like Friday to me.” 

“You’re such a emo buzzkill,” Pidge shook her head, spinning around to face Keith and crossing her legs underneath her to better fit on the desk. “You have no idea what fun really is, you probably just—oh my god is that a hickey?” 

“What?” Keith said instantly lifting his left hand up to cover the small bruise that he knew was on his neck. He looked up at Pidge who was staring at him with an expression that was a combination of a grin and a grimace. 

“That mark. On your neck. The one that you totally knew where it was,” Pidge said amusedly. “It’s a hickey.” 

“Oh,” Keith said not wanting to admit it immediately. “It’s uh… yeah.” 

“Gross,” Pidge smirked. “Is that from one of your conquests for your bet? Which by the way I still think is stupid and you’re gonna get hurt and you need to get tested like every day.” 

“Um, yes,” Keith nodded still not removing his hand from his neck. “It is, and I am. Gonna get hurt— tested, I mean.” 

“So who was it?” Pidge said wiggling her eyebrows. “Anyone I know? Was it the hot guy who jogs past the cafeteria every morning? Or was it that bicurious bro who often comes in here to ask you stupid things he could have googled? Oh, oh or was it that Psychology professor you had freshman year, you know? The one who was totally into you but you were super oblivious about it? Did you bang a professor? Oh my god did you bang a professor?” 

“What? No no, I— I did not bang a professor. And bicurious, really?” Keith said incredulously. 

“Then who? I gotta know,” Pidge said shaking his shoulder. 

“It’s...it’s no one you know,” Keith said trying for nonchalance. 

“Oh my god it was Lance again wasn’t it?” Pidge said flatly, shaking her head. 

“What!? ...How’d you know?” Keith frowned. 

“What!? I was totally guessing. Wow,” Pidge laughed. “That is… wow.” 

“Ugh,” Keith groaned. “I know. It’s pathetic.” 

“But I don’t understand,” Pidge said furrowing her brow. “The bet. All that shit you said to him the other day about how you weren’t gonna fuck him anymore. And you being all jealous over him and Nyma and junk.” 

“I wasn’t jealous about Nyma,” Keith scoffed, turning back to inputting the information into the computer. 

“You keep telling yourself that cowboy,” Pidge said condescendingly patting him on the shoulder.

“I should have never told you I was from Texas,” Keith sighed under his breath. 

“Look the only thing that’s not bigger in Texas, is your total denial,” Pidge said with a fake sympathetic look. “Just call off the bet, tell Lance you wanna continue screwing his brains out, and just take it from there.” 

“I’m not gonna do that,” Keith said annoyed. 

“And why not?” Pidge asked. “I’m sure Lance’s genitals will thank you.” Keith gave her a baffled look. “I meant that in terms of him not getting an STD. It didn’t come out right. The point is, you like him.” 

“What? No,” Keith shook his head. 

“You like him,” Pidge shrugged. “You do, just admit it.” 

“I don’t like him,” Keith said. Pidge leveled him a skeptical glare. “Ok I like him, but not in the way that you’re implying.” 

“Oh you mean the way where you hang out with him all the time and you want to kiss and have sex with him and you get jealous when he hooks up with other people?” Pidge listed with a smirk. “Or is there another way that I’m missing?” 

“When is your shift over?” Keith said flatly. 

“In five minutes,” she smirked. “I’m sorry you’re living in denial, but I gotta be honest with you,” she took a deep, steadying breath, “you can talk to me if you really need to. We’re friends.” 

“I know,” Keith sighed. “Maybe I do… you know, need to talk about it.” 

“That’s the spirit,” Pidge said punching Keith lightly in the arm. “Ok now so tell Mama Pidge all about your issues.” 

“Ok,” Keith said warily. “Well… we made that bet on Monday.” 

“Mhm.” 

“And I told him that I didn’t need him to get laid, that I could find anybody I wanted.” 

“You lied, mhm.” 

“It wasn’t a lie,” Keith scowled. Pidge looked at him skeptically. “Ok… maybe I was a bit over enthusiastic about my abilities to approach someone with the intention of sleeping with them but, like,  _ he made me so mad _ .” 

“Because he slept with Nyma and then came to you for some extra nookie?” Pidge smirked. 

“Laugh all you want, but yeah,” Keith frowned. “It’s pretty humiliating to have to be forced to watch as he flirts his way into someone else’s pants, and then comes to you the next day all ‘ _ oh you want the D–iscount? The D is for my dick’ _ or whatever,” he said mimicking Lance’s voice. 

“How do you know he slept with her though?” Pidge asked. 

“What do you mean? I watched them flirt all night. I was his stupid wingman,” Keith said incredulously. 

“Yeah,” Pidge said, “but how do you know he slept with her? Did he say he did?” 

“It doesn’t matter if he did or he didn’t,” Keith scowled. “It was his intention. And he made it really clear that I’m just… a backup.” 

“Hmm, I disagree,” Pidge said tapping her forefinger to her lips. “I think, and this is pure speculation, he likes you more than you realize, and I think you’re already head over heels for him but you’re just too dumb and emo to see it.” 

“I’m not emo,” Keith said darkly, crossing his arms against his chest.

“He said, like an emo,” Pidge mocked with a smirk. Keith rolled his eyes. “Oh come on, you being emo or not— you are— is not the issue here. The issue is that you’re in love with Lance and you don’t know how to deal with it.” 

“I’m not in love with him,” Keith said quietly, turning back to the computer and trying to resume his work. 

“Oh, come on,” Pidge scoffed. “I bet yesterday he probably just asked to hang out, flashed those big pearly whites at you and your knees went weak at the sight of his dazzling smile and you were tripping over yourself to go hang out with him. And I also bet that once you guys got to...hmm… I’m gonna say your place,  _ you’re _ the one who jumped him because all your talk about how much you can’t stand him and how you find him annoying and all that crap, it’s all pigtail pulling. Am I right so far?” 

“...no…” Keith said through gritted teeth. 

“I’m gonna take that as a yes,” Pidge smirked.

“Look,” Keith said annoyed. “Let’s just say… for arguments sake… that I like him. That changes nothing. All that changes is that maybe I get a bit more out of our hook ups than he does.” 

“Um, by that you pain and heartbreak right?” Pidge said incredulously. “You can’t expect to continue hooking up with someone you have feelings for, it’s just going to be more painful in the long run.” 

“ _ Hypothetical feelings _ ,” Keith correctly quickly. “And yes, I can. Because I don’t date. I’ve never dated, I don’t have any intention of dating, and I don’t expect Lance to want to date me so let’s just drop this.” 

“You like him,” Pidge said crossing her arms and shaking her head at him. “You like him and you need to be more honest with yourself.” 

“I am fine,” Keith frowned, focusing on inputting the data on the paper on the desk into the computer. 

“No, you’re in denial,” Pidge said dryly. 

“In denial about what?” Lance’s voice said above him. 

Dreading looking up, Keith kept his eyes on the screen avoiding both Pidge and Lance’s faces. He just continued inputting the data and ignored everything else around him. 

“Oh nothing,” Pidge said to Lance. “Oh wow, look at the time. That’s my shift! I’ll see you guys later. Remember: honesty and condoms. Bye!” With that, she jumped down off the library’s front desk and walked out towards the front door and was out of sight in under a minute. 

“...Ok,” Lance chuckled watching Pidge leave with a quizzical quirk of his brow. Keith could see him lean on the desk in his periphery, and tried to control the impulse to glance at him. “What are you doing?”

“Library pin numbers,” Keith said forcing himself to keep his eyes on the paper and the screen. “The scanner is broken so I have to input these all manually.”  

“Yikes, that sucks,” Lance said. “But, I did bring you this.” Keith looked up before he could stop himself and saw the large cup of coffee Lance had placed on the desk. “I thought maybe you’d want a cup of nasty, sugarless and creamless coffee.” 

“Oh,” Keith said blinking at the coffee cup on the desk. “Thank you,” he took the cup off the desk and took a long sip. He didn’t realize that he absolutely did the coffee until he had drunk a third of it. Keith glanced up at Lance and saw him smiling down at him with a soft expression. “You were right, thanks.” 

“I usually am,” Lance shrugged with a grin, taking a sip from his own cup of coffee and crossing his legs. “So,” he shifted around so he was sitting on the desk facing Keith with his back to the rest of the library, “How boring is that data input stuff?”

“Pretty fucking boring,” Keith sighed, turning over the page he was working on and placing it on the annoyingly small completed pile before turning back to the infuriatingly tall pile of information that still needed to be put in. “And I still have,” he gestured to the pile, “all this to do.”

“Yo that sucks,” Lance winced. “Hmm,” he set his cup down on the desk and moved over slightly so he was sitting closer to where Keith was working, “what if instead you blow that off and then you—”

“If you saw  _ “blow me” _ I swear Lance, there is a stapler right here and I’m, like, dick level with you right now,” Keith warned him. 

“Um, I wasn’t gonna say that, although I regret it because that’s awesome. I’m saving that for later,” Lance laughed. “No I was gonna say that I have a pack of uno cards some teenagers left in the coffee shop in my backpack, if wanna do that instead.” 

“Hell yeah,” Keith said minimizing the library book tracking program on the computer. 

“Really?” Lance said seemingly surprised that Keith agreed with him so quickly. 

“Yeah,” Keith nodded. “This is boring me to tears. Let Pidge do this crap in the morning.” He pushed back the chair from the desk, crossing his legs and resting his head on his arms behind him. 

“Ok yeah, awesome. Let me get the game,” Lance said excitedly, grabbing his backpack from the floor. “I gotta warn you though, I am like, really, really good at this game. I’m gonna kick your ass.” 

“Yeah ok,” Keith scoffed. “We’ll see.”

* * *

 

“Oh, oh and look at that, Uno,” Lance grinned slapping down a red skip turn card on a tall, teetering pile of uno cards. He held up on card in front of Keith’s face, swinging it from side to side. Keith, who was holding a comically large hand of cards, couldn’t even fight the smile that Lance’s enthusiasm caused. “And since your turn got skipped then I think it’s my turn to oh and look at this, a draw four wild card.” He dropped it on the game pile. “Boom bitch! I win again!” 

“Do you have to say ‘boom bitch’ everytime?” Keith asked with a smirk, placing his hand of cards down on the draw pile.

“Yes, I absolutely have to,” Lance grinned. “It’s part of the fun in winning the game.” 

“Well I have to say,” Keith said leaning forward in his chair to collect all the cards into a neat pile. “I am actually surprised at how good you are at this game.” 

“That’s what happens when you’re the youngest sibling; you get put on babysitting duty,” Lance said helping Keith organize the cards. “I ended up watching all my baby cousins and nieces and nephews. So it was either get good at games, or watch endless amounts of  _ Explora Dora _ ,” he said falling into a Cuban accent on the last words. “There’s only so many times you can hear ‘Can  _ you _ see the bridge?’” he paused and held a fake smile across his face, his mouth open like he was ready to talk at any moment. But with each passing second Keith felt an awkward giggle bubble in his throat until a minute had passed and Lance was still staring at him and Keith was laughing. “Good!” he finally said mimicking the high pitched Dora voice. 

“I can see where that would be annoying,” Keith laughed. 

“Oh you have no idea,” Lance huffed, grabbing the pile and shuffling the cards in a quick, practised motion. “Another round?” 

“Nah, I gotta start closing the library down now,” Keith sighed pushing back in his chair and getting up to stretch his back. “It closes in 15 minutes, and I have a few things to do before I can leave.” 

“Like what?” Lance asked as he put away his cards back into the box. 

“Like go around and make sure no one is asleep in the stacks. And put up all the chairs so the janitors can come in and clean. Turn off all the computers,” Keith listed. “You know, the fun stuff like that.” 

“I can help,” Lance said getting up from his seat. 

“Oh,” Keith blinked. “You really don’t have to.”

“I want to,” Lance smiled, the sight of which sent a heated coiling spark through Keith’s gut. Pidge’s words flashed in his mind and Keith decided that he if needed to be more honest with himself, he was going to start by admitting he did not want to even begin to know why Lance just made him feel like that. 

“Ok,” Keith said. “Yeah, ok sure um, you can start turning up the chairs and I’ll shut down the computers after I make the closing announcement.”

“Cool,” Lance nodded.

Keith watched him walk around from behind the desk and over to the rows of empty tables. He hadn’t realized he’d been staring at Lance and not looking where he was going until he banged into the edge of the desk knocking over a mug of pens. Feeling like an idiot, he rushed to stuff the pens back into the mug and hope no one noticed his mishap. 

Forcing himself not to look up at Lance again, Keith mumbled through his closing announcement and went to work shutting down all the computers in the labs. He could see Lance flipping all the chairs onto the desks in his periphery; he'd pushed up the sleeves of his shirt past his elbows and Keith could glimpse the thin gray of his briefs above the waistband of his pants when he lifted his arms. Keith felt taunted. 

“I’m gonna go walk the stacks and make sure no one’s fallen asleep somewhere,” Keith said once all the computers were off and the people had cleared the space.

“Oh I'll come with you,” Lance said jumping down from where he had sat on a table after turning over all the chairs. 

“You don't have to,” Keith said, his words having no impact on Lance as he continued to walk over to him. 

“It's cool,” Lance said with a smile and a shrug. “Honestly, I'll just get bored if I wait for you.”

“Alright,” Keith said walking towards the far wall with Lance in tow, against his better judgement. 

They weaved in and out of the book stacks, occasionally adjusting fallen or overturned books. Lance asked Keith questions about working in the library and Keith answered them, slowly forgetting that he was trying to force some emotional distance until he had completely forgotten. 

“So what's the weirdest thing you've caught someone doing in the library?” Lance asked, helping Keith put back a few books that had fallen. 

“Um, probably clipping toenails,” Keith said after a moment. 

“Ew what? That's so gross,” Lance said scrunching up his face in disgust. 

“Yeah it was pretty horrible,” Keith said as he fit the last book on the shelf. “Especially when he left his nail clippings on the table.”

“Oh dude, gross gross gross,” Lance laughed. “Ok what about what's the weirdest book anyone has asked if you guys carry?”

“Hmmmm depends on your definition of weird,” Keith said moving on to walk through the next aisle. “If you're talking weird for me weird, then it was someone who asked about a book on bug sex.”

“Oh ew,” Lance laughed. “But do you guys have that?”

“Surprisingly we do,” Keith nodded. “Which reminds me that we're getting a shipment of new books on marine animals, in case you were interested.”

“Yeah yeah yeah cool cool cool cool no doubt,” Lance said appreciatively. “So have you ever caught anyone having sex in here?” Keith glanced up at Lance's face next to him to see him wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. 

“No, and I really hope I never do,” Keith said walking through the last aisle. “I don't think anyone has had sex in here to be honest. 

“What? No, people totally have,” Lance said earnestly. “Just because you haven't caught them doesn't mean they haven't done it.”

“I still want to hope they aren't,” Keith said with a slight grimace. “Let me dream.”

“So you haven't even caught anybody doing anything?” Lance asked taking a small step closer to Keith. 

“Nope,” Keith said with a small shake of his head. He could feel the hairs on his arm stand up as Lance moved a bit closer. 

“Not even like making out or anything?” Lance asked, a slight smirk playing at the edge of his lips as he moved even closer. 

“No,” Keith said, certain that Lance couldn’t come to stand any closer. He was already pushed up against a bookshelf along the wall, with Lance standing over him, his forearm leaning on a shelf. 

“Shame,” Lance whispered, lowering his face towards Keith’s. “Seems like a good place to do that.” And just as the last word left his lips, they touched against Keith’s, soft and slowly. 

Normally kissing Lance was a somewhat hurried and rushed affair. The first dip usually led to a flurried rush of hands and teeth and tongue that ended in gasping breaths and pulls at clothes. More often than not were an obviously prelude to sex, one that came swiftly and surely within a few minutes after the first icebreaker kiss. 

But this kiss felt nothing like that. It was slow, controlled. Their hands carefully slid across each other’s cheeks and necks, cradling and caressing with gentle thumbs and light touches. The feathered kisses gave way to deep, long valleys that would break with a wet smacking noise that would ring in their ears before their lips met again and started all over. Breathy gasps punctuated the moments between, when they’d separate for a split second, eyes still closed, still wrapped up in the moment, until they plunged back in with the same gentle desperation. 

Keith’s head was swimming. Somewhere in his distant mind he remember the phrase “emotional distance”; but it quickly blurred and the context was lost, just as he lost himself in Lance. Every kiss was new, it was better, warmer, softer that the last. Each one took his breath and gave it back, dizzying him in the most incredible way.  

Their lips parted slowly, going back for another soft kiss and retreating further away each time until their mouths were just out of reach. Keith's eyes were still closed as his teeth grazed his bottom lip, pulling the tingling feeling of Lance’s lips on his. He could feel Lance’s hands cupping either side of his face, his thumb making gentle swirling circles on his cheek bone. 

“Come back to my place,” Lance whispered, barely audible over the sounds of Keith's heart beating in his ears. His eyes fluttered open, taking in the sight of Lance’s open and soft expression so close to his face. 

“Ok,” Keith agreed before he even thought much of it. “Oh um,” Keith said after a second. “I rode Rosa to work today.”

“Oh ok, do you still wanna come over?” Lance asked, still holding Keith's face gently in his hand. “I'm just not sure what the parking situation is over there.”

“I'll take my chances,” Keith said with a small shrug. He watched a slow, fond smile form on Lance's face. “Want a ride?”

“Yes, in all contexts,” Lance joked nodding his head.

“Ok, let's go you idiot,” Keith said rolling his eyes, all the bite in his words contrasted by the smile on his face.

Lance's hands carefully slid down Keith's face, his right hand going all the way down and reaching for Keith's hand. He gently intertwined their fingers and led Keith back through the stacks and across the empty, and now dimly lit library, to the front desk where their stuff still sat. Their hands let go briefly to grab their things and their empty coffees; but as soon as the cups were tossed, and their backpacks rested safely on their backs, and Keith grabbed his helmet from underneath the front desk, their hands found each other's again as they walked out of the library, Keith locking up behind them. 

They walked in a comfortable quiet over to Keith’s motorcycle parked around the side of the school library, their fingers intertwined the entire time. Keith couldn’t help but marvel at how surprisingly normal it felt to be walking hand in hand with Lance. Part of him wanted to attribute it to their long standing history with physical intimacy; holding hands was nothing compared to some of the things they’d done together over the past two years. But another part of him, the part of him that Pidge had been needling at and he’d been desperately trying to silence, that part of him knew that it felt normal because it was something someone normally did with the person they had feelings for. However Keith shoved that thought aside and ignored it, the same way he ignored how Lance’s thumb was rubbing softly against his.

* * *

 

With surprising ease, Keith was able to find a spot and park almost in front of Lance’s apartment building. They quickly entered the building, their hands found each other's again. Though Keith could still feel the residual vibrations from the motorcycle, he was overwhelmed by the sensory memory of Lance's hands holding onto his side, his body pressed up along the length of his back. 

Pulling him into the elevator, Lance pressed the number for his floor and stood close to Keith. He had un-entwined their fingers and slipped his hand low around Keith's waist, slipping his finger through the belt loop on Keith's pants. But when the elevator arrived at his floor, Lance took Keith's hand again and led him over to his door. Feeling vaguely nervous, Keith's other hand gripped the edge of his helmet as he was led through the doorway and into the apartment. 

Keith had been to Lance’s— or more accurately, Lance and Hunk’s apartment— several times. In fact, at many points over the past two years he felt like he had been in their apartment more than his own. More specifically in Lance’s bedroom than his own. 

And yet it had been just over 3 weeks since he'd been there last, and Keith felt awkward. Internally Keith wondered if their dumb bet was making him nervous, but he knew that he had Pidge’s words still bouncing around in the back of his mind. 

“Hey do you wanna put your bag and your helmet in my room?” Lance asked, pulling Keith back to the present. 

“Uh, yeah sure,” Keith nodded, walking through the shared living room space and into Lance’s bedroom. He dropped his backpack and helmet on the floor by the edge of Lance’s bed, and left the room before he had the urge to look around.

“Are you hungry?” Lance asked grabbing his laptop from the floor and pulling it onto his lap. He sat cross legged on the couch leaning against the armrest, the giant Han Solo decal staring at Keith as he dropped down onto the cushion next to him. 

“Kinda yeah,” Keith said toeing off his shoes, and kicking them away, bringing his sock covered feet up to cross his legs on the couch. 

“Cool cool, let's see what's good on seamless, maybe we can—” Lance’s voice was cut off by the sound of the apartment door opening. 

“Yo Lance, I think I saw a motorcycle parked out front that looks just like Keith’s,” Hunk said, looking down at his feet as he kicked his shoes off as he came in. Before he continued, he looked up and saw Lance and Keith both sitting on the couch looking at him. “Oh, because it is Keith's. Yeah that makes more sense.”

“Hey,” Keith said giving him a brief, awkward wave hello.

“Hey Keith,” Hunk smiled at him, his eyes flicking between Keith and Lance. “So… what were you guys doing?” 

“Looking for something to order to eat,” Lance said going back to looking at the screen on his lap. “Any suggestions?”

“Uh,” Hunk tossed his bag on the floor by his discarded shoes and walked over and dropped into the arm chair next to the couch. “I've been kinda feeling Thai all day to be honest.”

“Thai ok?” Lance asked looking at Keith, who nodded in response. “Thai it is then,” he said typing onto his computer. 

Once Lance found the restaurant on the website, they each gave him their orders and handed over cash for their parts of the bill. After their order was placed, Lance closed his computer and put it back on the floor, sliding it under the couch slightly so it wouldn't get stepped on. He excused himself to the bathroom, leaving Keith with Hunk who had been eyeing him quizzically since he had sat down. 

“So did I… interrupt something?” Hunk asked gesturing between Keith and where and Lance had been sitting. 

“No,” Keith said too quickly. “What would you be interrupting?”

“I don't know, a date?” Hunk said with a sloppy shrug, as he was still slumped in his chair. 

“What? No. We're not—this isn't a date,” Keith said shaking his head. 

“Ok,” Hunk said, clearly still doubtful. 

“Alright so,” Lance said coming back into the room, rubbing his hands together as he plopped down on the couch next to Keith. “The big question now is Mario Kart or Smash Bros?”

“Oh I say Smash Bros,” Hunk said sitting up in his seat. 

“That's what I was thinking,” Lance said. He turned to Keith, and swore he could feel Hunk’s eyes on him more than Lance’s. “What do you think?” 

“Yeah Smash Bros sounds good,” he said with a semi awkward nod. However Lance hadn't seemed to notice and he went on to set up the game and hand out the controllers. 

Keith found it easy to fall into the routine of the game and forget his previous anxiety. He could even admit that it was nice and even possibly fun to let loose a bit and hang out with his friends. So often he spent his time either working on one job or another, or studying and preparing for his pre-law classes.

It was nice to be a normal college student for once. To eat take out straight from the carton while drinking cheap beer and playing videos games. It felt good to laugh and make jokes with friends and just let loose. But more importantly, it was nice to hang out with Lance. 

Not that Keith hadn't before, or that he didn't like hanging out with Hunk too, but there was something about hanging out with Lance that just felt so easy. Like there was no pressure to be funny or interesting or nice or anything. They just got along so well and nothing felt forced and Keith couldn’t help but feel happy about it. 

So many times, Keith has had to force himself to be what someone else wanted him to be to fit whatever situation he was in. But with Lance things just came so naturally easy it became effortless. Conversations flowed with ease, never lasting into an awkward quiet leaving them silent and looking for things to say. Keith just felt good with Lance. 

“So that's my ninth win in a row,” Lance said dancing with the controller in hand in his seat on the couch. “Obviously, I win overall.” 

“But we said best out of 21,” Hunk said shaking his controller at Lance. 

“Yeah and that was,” Lance said smugly. “You got five and Keith got seven. That's 21.” He grinned up at Hunk, dangling a leftover noodle from his pad thai above him and dropping it into his mouth. 

“Oh, now you’re good at math,” Hunk frowned. “Not before when we were splitting up the dumplings. How convenient.” 

“Blah blah blah you’re just mad because I won,” Lance grinned nudging Keith lightly looking for agreement; Keith couldn’t help but smile back at him. He found that he kept doing that all night. 

“You keep thinking that,” Hunk said setting his controller aside. “Well,” he got up, stretching his back and arms, “It's been real. But I have so much crap to do tomorrow so I'm gonna hit the hay. Night guys.”

“Aw, ok,” Lance said. “Night Hunk.”

“Goodnight,” Keith said watching him walked towards his bedroom and close the door behind him. 

“He always does that when I win,” Lance said leaning in towards Keith and nudging him lightly. “He's a sore loser.”

“And you're a sore winner,” Keith smirked nudging him back. 

“Oh you've seen nothing yet,” Lance said pretending to brush aside his non existent long hair. “The only reason he didn't have to give me the winner’s belt is because you played too. Wouldn't be fair.”

“The winners belt?” Keith asked. 

“Yeah this,” Lance said jumping up and going over into the tall black bookcase full of game consoles, games and dvds. From the shelf he grabbed what looked like a cheap sort of old looking wrestling champion belt. “The Belt.”

“Why do you have this?” Keith laughed running his finger over the dented metal on the plaque on the front. 

“Apparently I can't “control myself” in thrift stores,” Lance said sarcastically. “But it comes in handy when we've made a bet.” Keith felt a weird combination of emotions at that word. 

“You’re so weird,” Keith said, his words infused with a certain amount of affection that he hadn't realized would be so palpable. 

“Yeah a little bit,” Lance grinned, putting the belt back. “Ok,” he yawned stretching his arms up above his head, “I'm actually kinda tired.”

“Me too,” Keith said yawning back. 

“Ok I'm gonna go change my clothes and junk,” Lance said walking over to his bedroom. 

Normally, Keith wasn't very skilled at reading the mood. He liked to be told things directly and in a clear, obvious way. And in that moment there was no exception. Keith stared at the back of Lance’s head, trying to figure out if this was his subtle way of telling him to go home. 

_ Why would he invite me over if he was just gonna send me home?  _

_ …because he just wanted to hang out as friends, obviously. Wow. I'm an idiot.  _

_ And once again, I thought we were gonna hook up. But he doesn't want me that way… but what about that kiss in the library. He held my hand the whole time here. But that doesn't really mean anything, does it?  _

_ I'm so confused.  _

“Hey, aren't you coming?” Lance asked turning around in the doorway, breaking Keith out of his thoughts. 

“Uh y–yeah,” Keith said awkwardly, getting up quickly from the couch. “Sorry I–I wasn't sure if you wanted me to go,” he said with a small, uncomfortable laugh. 

“You're so weird,” Lance said parroting back Keith's words, with what Keith was hoping sounded like the same amount of affection. 

Feeling strangely good, Keith walked over and into Lance’s bedroom, hearing Lance flick off the lights in the apartment behind him. With a warm, comfortable silence they got ready for bed, their movements slow and soft with exhaustion. But they got ready together—changing their clothes, and brushing their teeth, and washing their face—and Keith couldn't help but forget for just moment that this wasn't something they did everyday. 

“How many blankets?” Lance asked gesturing to the pile of blankets on his bed as he shut off the light. 

“Hmm, just one,” Keith said picking up the softest looking red blanket at the bottom of the pile.  

“Ugh, but I'm gonna be cold,” Lance frowned picking up the other blankets and dropping it on his desk chair. “You're just gonna have to be my heater then,” he shrugged jumping on the bed. 

“Oh, will I?” Keith said climbing onto the bed pushing back the blanket to get underneath it. 

“Yeah,” Lance grinned getting under the blanket and scooting over to make room for Keith to lay down next to him. “You're always so hot.”

“Thanks for the confidence boost,” Keith joked laying down and turning to his side so he faced Lance. He watched the realization dawn on Lance’s face. 

“I meant— well I mean yeah— you're just hot,” Lance said quickly, and even in the dark of the room, Keith could see a small blush form on his cheeks. “Like you run hot. Body temperature wise.” Keith said nothing, he just raised an eyebrow at him. “Who am I kidding, you know I think you're hot.”

“I didn't actually,” Keith said, tucking his hands under his head. “I don't think you've ever actually said that to me before.”

“Really?” Lance said sounding genuinely surprised. He scooted closer so that their faces were inches apart. “I'll make sure to tell you that more often.”

Something warm swirled in Keith's gut at Lance’s words. His eyes searched Lance’s face looking for anything that contradicted what he said but the earnestly he found only made him more nervous. The words “emotional distance” floated through his mind just as he leaned forward and softly pressed his lips against Lance’s. 

Their kiss was brief but Keith still felt himself holding his breath. Exhaling carefully, he felt Lance’s hands slowly and gently come to rest low on his waist, pulling them closer together, entwining their legs and leaning their foreheads together. With a slight hesitation, Keith let his hands rest on Lance’s hips letting his fingers dip under his shirt. 

The million things that had been going through Keith's mind suddenly stopped and his mind went blank. He could only think of how safe and comfortable he felt laying there with Lance. How much he wanted to kiss him again. How there was just something about all that attention…


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhhh i'm so glad you guys are liking this fic!!!!! it makes me so happy!!!   
> i hope you guys enjoyed the soft klance because the angst is coming

* * *

Keith awoke the next morning feeling comfortable and warm. He slowly came into consciousness, curling in closer to whatever he was cuddled against. By the time that his eyes fluttered open in the dimly lit room, he realized that the surprisingly warm and soft thing he was laying on was actually Lance’s body. 

In the amber glow of the early morning light, he could see the open expanse of Lance's neck and the sharp line of his chin. His head was pillowed on Lance’s firm chest with his arm wrapped securely around his waist. Lance’s hand rested low on Keith's back under his t-shirt and their legs were hooked loosely under the blanket. The scent of warm coffee and Lance’s woody cologne filled his nose, making the quintessential Lance smell that made Keith weak at the knees.  

Keith felt completely, and totally at home exactly where he was. It quickly began to terrify him. 

He could deal with the fact he just had the best night sleep he'd had in awhile. And he could deal with the fact that he felt totally normal waking up in Lance’s arms. Keith could even deal with the fact that waking up next to Lance sent a spark in his stomach that just screamed domesticity in a way that he never thought he'd enjoy.

But he had a fleeting thought that made him nervous. More than nervous. It made him terrified that he was suddenly in too deep. 

_ I love him.  _

He was horrified at his own thought. 

_ Wait no I don't. I can't. I don't love him, I don't feel anything for him. We're nothing.  _

Keith closed his eyes and tried to push out his thoughts, trying to force Lance out of his mind; but that was hard to do when he was curled up against his side. 

_ We're not nothing. But we're not something. It's just me. I'm the one who feels this way. I'm just his friend… or I'm his fuck buddy… or I'm just— I don't even know what I am to him.  _

He felt Lance stir at his side and he felt panicked that he might wake up during his internal crisis. Keith didn't feel ready to talk to Lance yet, maybe not ever again. How was he supposed to talk to Lance and interact with him like everything is normal if he just had that terrifying thought. 

_ I need to leave. I can't be here when he wakes up. I might say something that I'll regret. I can just apologize to him later but I have to go.  _

And with that thought, Keith carefully extracted himself some Lance’s side, praying he didn't wake him up. Once off the bed, he grabbed his jeans and socks and shoes with one hand, threw his bag over his shoulder and grabbed his helmet with the other, and left the bedroom before he could wake Lance. Gingerly closing the door behind him, he dropped his bag and helmet quietly on the floor and frantically pulled on his clothes in the living room. 

“Um, what are you doing?” Hunk asked. 

Startled at the sound of Hunk’s voice that he had not been expecting at all, Keith almost tripped as he pulled on his shoe. Brushing his clothes off and trying to look like what he was doing was totally normal, Keith stood up and grabbed his stuff and walked away from Lance’s door. Hunk watched him from where he was sat on the couch, cereal bowl in hand. 

“Nothing, I just gotta leave early. I have a thing,” Keith said unconvincingly. 

“A thing?” Hunk repeated around a bite of Frosted Flakes. 

“Yeah,” Keith nodded, knowing his flimsy excuse was unbelievable at best. Hunk looked decidedly unconvinced. “I have to go. Tell Lance… um… just don't tell him anything. No wait, tell him that I'm sorry but I have work to do. And that I'll text him later.”

“Is everything ok?” Hunk asked concernedly. 

“Yeah, why do you ask?” Keith said pulling his bag over his shoulder and preparing to leave. 

“Because you just ran out of Lance’s bedroom and then got dressed in my living room at,” he paused to peer over at his phone on the couch next to him, “6:45 in the morning.”

“Everything is fine, I'm fine,” Keith said, still not sounding convincing. 

“Did you and Lance have like a fight or something…?”

“No, we didn't I just…” the will and strength to finish his sentence suddenly left him and Keith sighed heavily . “Do you know,” he began somewhat reluctantly, “when you thought that you felt one way about something… but then you realized that you actually felt a completely different way?” 

“Keith,” Hunk said sympathetically. “You're talking about Lance right?” Keith said nothing but that seemed to confirm it for Hunk. “Keith, what happened? Did he say something to you or what?” 

“He didn't say anything I just,” he let out a sigh, “I have to go. Jus–just tell him I'm sorry. And that I'll text him. Later.”

“Ok but I'm still confused,” Hunk said, but Keith had already grabbed his helmet and was heading for the door. “Keith. Keith wait! Kei—” 

Keith closed the door behind him and didn't look back as he raced towards the steps. He barely paid attention to how he got out of the building but before he knew it, Keith was pulling his helmet on and climbing onto his bike. Without a second thought he pulled out of the spot and drove home.

* * *

 

“I didn't say you had to come over,” Keith frowned, holding the door open to his apartment as Pidge practically pushed her way inside panting and out of breath. “Don't you have work this morning?” 

“You can't—” heavy breath, “just text me—” heavy breath, “ _ I love him _ —” heavier breath, “and not expect me—” heavy breath, “to freak out!” Pidge said panting heavily between words. She dropped herself onto his couch, catching her breath and pulling at the front of her hoodie to fan herself. “Also I just called in sick. I'm there enough as it is. Let the librarian do some work for a change.”

“Fair enough,” Keith nodded, locking his door and walking over to the other side of the couch. “You still didn't have to come over though,” he said sitting down next to Pidge. 

“Are you kidding?” Pidge said jumping up in place. “You FINALLY had your “I'm in love with Lance” moment and you think that I'm gonna just let that slide. Nuh uh.”

“It's not a big deal,” Keith shrugged, crossing his arms in front of his chest and slumping against the couch. “It's not like this changes anything.”

“Of course it changes things,” Pidge said annoyedly. “Now you can tell him and you guys can go from fuck buddies to like, you know, boyfriends.”

“Yeah, that's not gonna happen,” Keith said dryly. 

“Why not?” Pidge asked. “You both have mutual gay feelings for each other. All romantic–like and shit like that.”

“Because he doesn't like me that way,” Keith said with a shrug. Pidge frowned at him. “Look, yes I really like him or whatever and I've come to the realization that I have feelings for him and all that shit. But he definitely doesn't feel that way about me so the point is moot.”

“Ugh you're so dramatic,” Pidge groaned throwing herself back against the couch. 

“Yeah, I'm the dramatic one,” Keith said sarcastically. 

“Just tell stupid Lance about your stupid feelings and then be stupid boyfriends already. Stupid,” Pidge said in a huff. 

“It's not that simple Pidge,” Keith sighed. “Honestly, I just wanna forget about this and pretend I never had feelings for him. And then not talk about this. Ever again.”

“Dumb, that's dumb,” Pidge shook her head. “You're the only one who thinks that's a good, viable idea.”

“Look, Lance is the kind of guy who just tells the person he likes that he likes them and then asks them out,” Keith said. “And he's never asked me out. So sure I mean, yeah he thinks I'm hot and we've fucked a lot and sexted a bunch and we're friends I guess, but I'm the idiot who developed feelings. He didn't. That's that.”

“You're an idiot for so many reasons,” Pidge said shaking her head. “But fine,” she put her hands up defensively, “if you don't wanna say anything to him that's up to you. But as your friend I'm still gonna be annoying about it.” 

“I wouldn't expect anything else,” Keith said with a half smile. 

“Good,” Pidge smiled. “Now since I took the day and you're indebted to me as a friend” Keith scoffed, “let's get some breakfast and then we'll play video games until our eyes bleed. Sounds good?” 

“Sounds great.”

* * *

 

“So you just ran out of there?” Pidge asked with a mouth full of chips. “After getting dressed in the living room and freaking out Hunk. Ha, what a weirdo.” She was stretched out on his couch, a can on pizza Pringles in one hand and a handful of chips in the other. After several hours of video games and two movies later, the Xbox controllers were left abandoned on the coffee table, surrounded by the bags of chips and soda that they had splurged on at the convenience store that morning. 

“Yeah, it wasn't my smoothest exit,” Keith said rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. 

“I'll say,” Pidge laughed. “So what, you just woke up and were like “ _ oh fuck I'm gay _ ” and then you ran out of the room?”

“Well see, I kinda already knew I was gay so that wasn't the issue,” Keith said flatly. “But like,” he paused to sigh, tossing his head back against the couch armrest, “yeah it was really gay.” 

“Ooh let me guess,” Pidge said excitedly sitting up, putting the pringles can on the floor. “So you guys were probably all cozy last night, cuddling in bed and shit, being gay. And he probably said some sappy Lance shit that made you feel all warm and gooey and gay. And then in the morning you probably woke up cuddling, went “ _ oh fuck I'm in love with this tool _ ,” panicked, and ran out of the apartment.” She looked at him smugly waiting for his response. 

“You know,” Keith began dryly, “when you say “let me guess” and then describe exactly what happened, it makes me think that you have hidden cameras everywhere.”

“Who says I don’t?” Pidge grinned. Keith scowled at her. “I'm joking, you're just really predictable.”

“No I'm not,” Keith frowned. 

“Yeah you are,” Pidge smirked. “You're a emo broody sappy romantic who likes to pretend he has no emotions.”

“...no.” 

“Ok, sure,” Pidge said placatingly patting his shoulder. “So what's your plan then? Do you just like ignore him forever, or like fake your death and move to Alaska and become a professional bear wrestler who lives in a cabin that you built yourself with the help of your wolf companion?” 

“That's really specific,” Keith said looking at her with a mix of amusement and incredulousness. “But, no that's not what I was planning.”

“Then what  _ is _ your master plan?” Pidge asked reaching for the can of pringles on the floor. Exhaling heavily, Keith reached over and grabbed his wallet from his bag and pulled out the still pristine drink card that Lance had given him. Flipping it over in his hand, he bent forward and gave it to Pidge. “What’s this?”

“That’s what I’m supposed to be using to track my progress in our bet,” Keith sighed. 

“That’s mildly horrifying,” Pidge said looking up from the drink card. “But it’s blank.” 

“No shit Sherlock,” Keith said sarcastically. “I obviously am not very good at going out and sleeping around when I never go out and I never sleep around.” 

“Well, it’s good to know that you don’t have some horrific venereal disease,” Pidge said handing back the card. “So like, why not just go out and have some random totally awesome, hot, anonymous sex?” 

“What part of “I never go out and I don’t sleep around” did you not understand?” 

“Ok but then why even make the bet in the first place?” 

“I don’t know!” Keith groaned, throwing his head back. “Ugh, I think I was jealous and mad and I don’t know, I reacted weird and said things I didn’t mean or know how to act on. I just…” he paused, looking down at the blank drink card he was twirling in his hands, “...I really like him. But he just… Pidge I… I'll call off this stupid, dumb, idiotic bet that I never should have agreed to in the first place. And… and if he asks why, I'll tell him.” 

“Ok,” Pidge said with a short nod. “Good plan.”

“Well, it's not a good plan,” Keith said with a short humorless laugh. “It's just a regular plan.”

“No, no. You're confronting your emotions,” Pidge said. “It's a good plan.” And despite her confidence, Keith still felt skeptical.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i think you guys are gonna like this chapter :) 
> 
> (also since the next chapter is so short i'm gonna do a double update today and finish the fic off )

* * *

The next morning, Keith found himself standing in front of the coffee shop door debating on whether or not he wanted to go inside. He felt uncomfortably nervous; the kind of nervous that made his insides clench and his heart feel like it was in his throat. Keith stood in front of the shop door, his hand extended to reach for the handle, internally struggling on whether or not to go inside. Eventually the choice was made for him when someone opened the door, nearly smacking him in the face, and Lance saw him in the doorway from behind the counter.

“Keith?” Lance said waving to him.

“Uh hey,” Keith said taking a few quick steps inside over to the counter. He made the mistake of making eye contact with Lance and Keith could actually feel himself going weak at the knees like some sort of school girl. It annoyed him beyond belief how much Lance’s unfairly attractive lopsided grin gave him butterflies in his stomach.

“Hey,” Lance said, leaning forward with his hands on the counter. He looked like he wanted to say something but he wasn’t sure if he should. But Keith couldn’t bring himself to say anything. “So you um, left…” he began after a few seconds of silence. “Hunk said you told him you had a thing? And that you’d text me? But you … didn’t.”

“Yeah,” Keith swallowed awkwardly. “I actually wanted to talk to you about that.” Lance looked surprised and vaguely nervous. “Can—can we talk?”

“Uh ye—yeah,” Lance nodded. “Um, I go on break in like 15 minutes. Can it wait until then?”

“Of course,” Keith said with a short nod. “I’ll just go, um, wait over there,” he said pointing towards the tables.

“Ok,” Lance said looking uncharacteristically nervous. “Do you … want a coffee? For while you wait?”

“Uh, sure,” Keith said awkwardly. He watched Lance turn towards the coffee machine, grabbing a large cup from the stack on the counter next to him. His eyes were glued to the back of Lance’s head, trying to figure out what he was thinking. But by the time Lance turned back around with his coffee, Keith hadn’t come any closer to knowing what was going on in Lance’s head.

“Here you go,” Lance said, handing the hot cup over to Keith. His smile had slipped a little, curling into something more anxious and no longer reached his eyes, though he seemed to be holding it for Keith. “On the house.”

“Thanks,” Keith said taking the cup and giving Lance a brief smile. He turned around, mildly grateful to walk away from Lance for a bit to regain his courage, and walked over to an empty table towards the back of the dining area.

Never had 15 minutes passed so slowly. Keith tried not to countdown the minutes, but he found it hard not to look at the time every thirty seconds. But as the clock ticked down he grew more and more nervous, feeling worried that something, anything, would go wrong. He tried to drink his coffee to distract him, but he couldn’t taste anything; his mouth and throat felt dry and thick.

After spending the time waiting in a tense panic, Keith barely noticed as Lance came and sat down in front of him. It wasn't until he saw Lance’s long tan fingers sliding over a chocolate chip cookie on a napkin across the table, that he realized that he was there.

“You looked like you could use a cookie,” Lance said with a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

“Oh, thank you,” Keith said pulling the napkin a bit closer to him. Still too nervous to speak, he glanced around at the rest of the coffee shop, watching as Lance's coworker seamlessly took his place behind the counter. The tables around them were mostly full for a warm Sunday morning, and though they were separated at a back table, Keith still felt like too many people would hear him.

“So what'd you want to talk to me about?” Lance asked, lightly drumming his fingertips on the table top.

“Um, could we go somewhere more… private?” Keith asked glancing over at the older woman who had just sat down at the table next to them with a small coffee and newspaper.

“Yeah sure,” Lance nodded sliding out of his seat. “Um, there's a small park like two blocks away. But if that’s too far, we can just go behind the shop, there’s like a small alley there where we take our breaks. It’s actually cleaner than it sounds,” he added with a light laugh.

“Um ok,” Keith agreed getting up from the table.

He folded the napkin over the cookie and put it in his front hoodie’s pocket. The coffee that had gone neglected was still a bit warm in his hand, but he couldn't bring himself to drink it. Keith couldn't even bring himself to look up at Lance as he followed him through the employees only door behind the counter and around through the kitchen and out to the small alley.

Lance had been right about it being cleaner than it sounded. And although there was a row of garbage cans along the wall that faced the shop, everything else was clear of trash. Next to the doorway was a small patio table with three chairs, clearly meant for employees to use for their breaks. Lance pulled out a chair and sat in it, gesturing for Keith to do the same.

With a nervous, numb hand Keith pulled out the chair across from Lance and sat down. He set his coffee cup on the table, anxiously thumbing the cardboard sleeve as he tried to think of a way to break the silence. After what felt like an eternity but in actuality was only a few seconds, Keith finally opened his mouth only to be stopped by Lance.

“Um wait,” Lance said quickly before Keith could talk. “Before you say anything, I have to… I have to tell you something.” Surprised by Lance, Keith stayed quiet, giving him a brief nod to show he was listening. Lance took a noticeably deep breath, splaying his hands across the table to steady himself before he spoke.

“I haven’t been completely honest with you,” Lance said warily. “I’m actually… um I kind of… I’m…” he sighed, the energy to continue leaving him as he searched for how to phrase what he wanted to say. Instead, he reached into his back jeans pocket and pulled out his wallet. Keith watched him, completely perplexed and feeling more nervous than before. “Here,” Lance pulled out a card from his wallet and slide it across the table to Keith.

“Is this for the bet?” Keith said picking up the blank drink card that Lance had placed on the table.

“Yeah,” Lance said quietly. “I'm… I wanna call off the bet.” Keith's eyebrows shot into his hairline and he audibly heard his heart beat faster. “I was gonna tell you yesterday but you left before I woke up and then you didn't contact me so I realized that you must have known and this isn't exactly how I wanted to tell you but I needed to say it before you confirmed my suspicions and—”

“Lance I don't—”

“I'm in love with you,” Lance breathed, his eyes searchingly scanning Keith's face for a reaction. “And I know you know it, but I had to say it—I had to tell you first before I heard you say that you knew. I realize now that I went too far with how I act around you. I'm sorry. I just…” his eyes fell to his hands on the table and Keith felt himself deflate at the loss of Lance's gaze. “I love being around you. And I think sometimes I forget that you don't feel that we're… that we're not…”

“You're... in love with me?” Keith said, his voice thick and low.

“Yeah,” Lance admitted softly. “I had planned on telling you yesterday— well, I had originally planned to tell you Friday. But then I lost my nerve at the library and I thought maybe I'd tell you back at my place but then Hunk came back early so I just…”

Lance trailed off with a heavy sigh. Slumping back in his seat, he drummed his fingers anxiously on the table as a valley of silence grew between them. Keith knew he should say something, but he had moved on from shocked numb to completely catatonic.

“I really was gonna tell you yesterday though,” Lance said quietly lifting his gaze up to meet Keith's eyes for a second before they both looked away. “I had this whole speech prepared about how I'm an immature idiot for not telling you sooner and how I should have never tried to make you jealous or taunted you into that stupid bet or even agreed to that dumb bet because it was the exact opposite of what I wanted and how I've been in love with you for over a year and a half and I swear this was all supposed to sound better in the speech I had prepared and more romantic and stuff but…”

They shared a brief look before Lance looked back down at his hands. Part of Keith wanted Lance to look up at him again, just so he could search his face to see if he was lying or playing a trick in him. But the other part of him knew Lance was being honest and he wanted to avoid eye contact for as long as possible to preserve the tiny bit of calm he had left.

“So yeah,” Lance swallowed, continuing. “I know that you figured it out and I made you uncomfortable and that's why you left in a hurry yesterday and that's what you came here to tell me so I just had to… yeah, I just had to tell you how I felt first.” He nodded to himself as his fingers scratched into the table. “So yeah… that's it.”

There was a long pause. Somewhere between screaming and comatose, Keith sat at the small table, at a loss on what to say. On one hand he was immeasurably happy. But in the other he was almost convinced he was dreaming.

“Um,” Keith began slowly. “I uh… here.” He dug his hand into his front pocket and pulled out his own blank drink card. He leaned forward and held it out for Lance to take. Looking confused, Lance took the card and examined it, seeing that it was completely unused. “I came here to call off the bet.”

“You hadn't… the card is blank,” Lance said holding it in front of his face. He looked at Keith over the card and Keith felt himself start to turn red.

“Yeah,” Keith nodded. “Turns out I couldn't actually even approach anyone.”

“Oh,” Lance said with a slightly positive tone in his voice.

“And I thought it was because I'm just… not capable of doing that,” Keith continued. “But I realized yesterday it was because I think I'm in love with you.”

“Oh— wait what?” Lance said dropping his hands to the table with a loud thump.

“I shouldn't have agreed to the bet,” Keith said focusing on trying to say everything he needed to and ignoring the growing frenzy sitting across from him. “I was jealous and angry and in denial about how I felt about you and I said things I shouldn't have and I'm sorry.”

“Wait, wait what?” Lance repeated a bit more frantically.

“And I think I might—”

“Hold on hold on I don't mean to interrupt you there but WHAT!?” Lance cried out looking shocked, leaning forward on the table. “You _what_ me?”

“I… I love you,” Keith said hesitantly.

“Yeah ok that's what I thought you said,” Lance sitting back in his seat. He looked sort of lost and disoriented as he stared a hole into the table. “Sorry I'm just… I wasn't expecting that.”

“Neither was I if I'm being honest,” Keith said with dry laugh. “I only really figured it out yesterday.”

“Yesterday?” Lance gaped. “So that's why you ran out. That makes more sense.”

“Yeah, I'm sorry about that,” Keith said with a slight embarrassed grimace. “Wait,” he sat up and furrowed his brow at Lance, “did you just say a year and a half?”

“Oh,” Lance swallowed. “Um… yeah. I mean— it probably wasn't like exactly a year and a half… it was probably um, longer.”

“How… how the hell did you have feelings for me for a year and a half and I didn't know it?” Keith asked flabbergasted.

“I actually thought I was kinda obvious,” Lance chuckled self deprecatingly, running a hand through his hair. “I can't even tell you how many times I almost said I love you while we were… you know… fucking.”

“How did you know for a year and not go crazy?” Keith asked more to himself than Lance. “I've known for a day and I thought I was gonna lose my mind.”

“It wasn't easy,” Lance said. “But I mean,” he looked up at Keith softly, a small, warm smile on his face, “falling for you was easy. Just the keeping it to myself was hard.”

Keith was at a loss to what to say. Expressing himself didn't come easy in simple situations, and he felt more out of his depth than he'd ever have before. He wanted to figure out a way to say everything that he was feeling but his mind was blank and instead he just sat across from Lance, in utter silence, slowly processing what was happening.

“Um,” Lance looked down at his phone in his pocket, “My breaks pretty much over actually. I have to get back.” He slowly stood up from his chair and Keith just watched him, partially frozen in place.

“Oh,” Keith blinked, having forgotten for a minute that they work at Lance’s work. “Yeah of–of course.”

“Sorry, I don’t mean to like send you away or—”

“No, no I understand, it’s totally cool,” Keith reassured quickly, getting up from his chair. “I’ll, um… I’ll let you get back to work.”

“Yeah,” Lance nodded. He paused, his eyes searching Keith's face as if he was looking for something and when he didn't find it after a long moment, they dulled slightly. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something else, but he then closed it and turned to open the door. Lance took a step back as he opened it, gesturing for Keith to go in first, the small smile he wore faltering slightly.

After a second of hesitation, Keith grabbed his now very lukewarm coffee and walked around the small table and went through the doorway and back into the coffee shop kitchen. Despite the surprising discussion of their mutual feelings, Keith still couldn’t help but still feel a sense of unease. Things didn’t seem any different or better or less awkward as they walked back through the kitchen and out into the main cafe area of the coffee shop.

Glancing in his periphery, Keith watched Lance rejoin his coworker behind the counter, slipping the cream colored apron around his waist and tying the strings behind him. Not sure what to do with himself, Keith tightened his grip on the cup and stared at the back of Lance’s head, willing him to turn around and say something, anything to break the weird sudden tension between them. But Lance had thrown himself into cleaning one of the coffee machines, facing his back towards Keith. At tightness gathered in the back of Keith’s throat as he gathered the energy to speak.

“I—I guess I’ll see you later then?” Keith said, trying to sound normal but knowing he was far from it  
   
“Yeah,” Lance nodded, barely turning his head to look at Keith. A pang in Keith’s chest told him that it was a dismissal and that only served to confuse him more.

“Ok,” Keith said quieter this time, more to himself than to Lance. “I’ll talk to you later.” Forcing down the lump in his throat, Keith left the coffee shop without looking back.

He walked home with rapid, almost frenzied steps, his eyes not once leaving the pavement in front of him. His brows were furrowed so tightly that he could sense a tension headache building in his temples. The cottony feeling of confusion and doubt filled his mouth and throat as his mind went over his and Lance’s conversation again and again looking for what went wrong.

_I don’t get it, I just don’t know what I said that was wrong? Did I miss something he said? Or misread the situation? I couldn’t have. He confessed, then I confessed, and then we talked about it, and then he—_

Keith stopped in the middle of the sidewalk right front of his building. As realization dawned on him he felt stupid for still being so oblivious. It was so obvious that it was practically laughable.

_I was supposed to kiss him._

Closing his eyes and cursing at himself, Keith rubbed his hand down his face, exasperation ebbing off him in giant waves. Of course he was supposed to kiss Lance, it’s so obvious now that Keith was actually angry at himself.

He replayed the moment right before they went back inside over again in his head. In hindsight he could see it so clearly in his mind; the way Lance had stood expectantly in front of him waiting for Keith to make the next move. How he opened and closed his mouth debating on whether or not to say something. And how his warm, slightly asymmetrical smile didn’t quite reach his eyes as they went back inside. He had looked mildly disappointed and Keith misunderstood why, because, as usual, he couldn’t read Lance properly.

Annoyed with himself, Keith debated on turning around and returning to the coffee shop, walking straight up to Lance, pulling him by the shirt, and kissing him hard and deep to show Lance that he meant what he had said. But as soon as he thought it, he knew it was a terrible idea and possibly a way to get Lance fired from his job so he decided against it. He headed up the stairs, nibbling on the chocolate chip cookie Lance had given him, planning out his next move.

* * *

 

Keith wasn't sure how long he had been laying in bed, but it felt like an eternity had passed when he finally heard a knock on the door.

An excitement gathered in his stomach as he raced out of bed and scrambled over to the front door. His hand gripped the doorknob as the other undid the lock and he threw the door open. On the other side, standing nervously in the hallway with his hands deep in the pockets of his black jeans, Lance looked up at him from where he had been staring a hole into the bottom of the door and immediately opened his mouth to speak.

“Hey I'm sorry I know I should have texted or told you before that I was coming over but I feel like maybe I didn't—”

But he didn't get to finish his thought. Keith grabbed the front of his shirt and yanked him down, pressing their lips together. He could feel Lance’s shock in the stiffness of his lips and briefly Keith worried he'd calculated wrong by just pulling Lance into a kiss. But almost instantly Lance brought his hands up to cup Keith's face, kissing back almost as desperately as Keith was.

Their kiss wasn’t the most amazing kiss they'd ever shared, or even their best kiss. But somehow it felt like the most truthful, as if they’d finally both let their guards down and for the first time and were showing just how badly they wanted each other. Every nip on their lips, every swipe of their tongue, every gasped breath said “I need you, I love you” with an almost painful clarity. It felt real, and uninhibited, and honest, not only with each other but with themselves for maybe, the first time.

They broke apart slowly, both of them short of breath and dizzy. Keith could feel the light, warm huffs of Lance’s breath on his face like a reminder that Lance was just as overwhelmed as he was. Licking his lips and savoring the lingering feeling of Lance’s mouth on his own, Keith took a long moment before looking up at Lance. When their eyes met there was brief pregnant pause before they both burst into laughter.

“Well that answers basically all my questions,” Lance chuckled sticking his hands back into into his front pockets.  

“What questions?” Keith asked, his hands still loosely holding onto Lance’s shirt.

“Oh you know,” Lance shrugged with a soft smile, “if you meant it when you said you liked me, if we were on the same page, if I upset you somehow.”

“Yes, yes, and definitely not,” Keith said counting off on his fingers. “You didn’t upset me, I just totally misread the situation. I realized I should have just probably kissed you before you went back to work but I was in shock and I was overwhelmed and I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about,” Lance shook his head, taking his hands out of his pockets and placing them on Keith’s waist. “I should have told you like a year ago.”

“I still can’t believe that you kept that to yourself for so long,” Keith said flabbergasted. “I realized it like 24 hours ago and I couldn’t even keep it to myself.”

“Well basically I had convinced myself that you didn’t like me that way,” Lance said a bit sadly. “I was obviously wrong, but… I don’t know, it seemed like it was true at the time. And then I guess I just...” he sighed, “thought it for so long that it just became the truth.”

“Sorry I made you feel like that,” Keith deflated a bit. “It’s funny because that’s what I thought too. That you only saw me as just a hookup… and a back up hookup at that.”

“Definitely not,” Lance said shaking his head. “I mean... that’s totally my fault, my poor coping mechanism was to just make it seem like I wasn’t totally pining for you by… well… hooking up with other people. Which I wasn’t, just for the record.”

“What about the whole thing with Nyma? At the party?” Keith asked.

“Oh that,” Lance laughed dryly. “Yeah, that was my failed and poorly planned attempt at making you jealous. She was in on it and everything… It did not work.”

“Oh no it worked,” Keith nodded. “Only instead of I guess, making me want to fight for you or whatever your plan was, I just got pissed off and left.”

“Like I said, it didn’t work,” Lance laughed. Keith couldn’t help but laugh too; it was just all too absurd not to.

“Well, from now on let’s just try to be honest and upfront with each other,” Keith said, moving his hands up Lance’s chest and onto his neck and jaw, thumbing at his cheeks lightly. “No more secret plans, no more miscommunication, no more bullshit.”

“Got it,” Lance agreed, smiling down at Keith. “No more bullshit.”

“You’re not even gonna last a week,” Keith smiled fondly up at him. “Bullshit is your middle name.”  

“Actually my middle name is Alejandro,” Lance said with a smug smirk. “But I bet I’ll be the best, no bullshit boyfriend you’ve ever had.”

“You’re the only boyfriend I’ve ever had,” Keith said, the word "boyfriend" feeling new and exciting.

“I bet I’ll be the only boyfriend you ever will have,” Lance grinned, sliding his hands around his waist and pulling Keith close.

“I’ll take that bet,” Keith nodded, not able to contain his amusement. “What do I get if I win?”

“I stop being your boyfriend,” Lance said softly leaning in to kiss Keith. “And maybe... I’ll be something more instead.”

“You’re on,” Keith whispered right before he closed the distance and kissed him.


	8. Epilogue (sort of)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's overrrrrrrrrrrrr  
> i hope everyone enjoyed reading it as much as i enjoyed writing it. also S/O to @ainu who commissioned this fic from me and gave me her outline, she's the goddamn best and you should all go check out her art it's amazing.
> 
> [****NOW THERE IS FANART****](https://daddyroboarm.tumblr.com/post/158646217833/accordingtomyresearch-the-bet-also-for-ainu)

* * *

_**Several Hours Later** _

Sweaty, panting, and exhausted, Keith fell back on the bed next to Lance with thud, bouncing slightly. He ran a hand through his hair as he tried to regain his breath. Next to him Lance was in a similar state, breathing heavily with a deeply satisfied grin on his face.

“So that's what like…four?” Lance asked between pants.

Keith twisted his head to look at him. Lance’s hair was messy and plastered to his face, and his clear tan skin was flushed a dark red from exertion. Keith could see the nail marks he'd just left on his shoulders that disappeared down to his back. There was a fresh bite mark on his neck and his chest all the way down to wear the blanket barely covered his abdomen was hot and slick with sweat. His soft kiss redden lips were turned up in a small grin and he looked like the picture of post–orgasmic bliss.  

“I think that was actually three?” Keith said after thinking for a moment. “Wait,” he turned and reached over to his desk and grabbed the drink card he had placed there earlier. He looked at the three holes already punched in the card. “Nope this is four, you're right,” Keith said grabbing the pen from the desk and making a fourth hole in the card.

“Damn four,” Lance whistled. “That's kinda impressive actually. We might _actually_ do the full five today.”

“We can certainly try,” Keith said putting the card and pen back on his desk. He turned back so he could lay in his side and face Lance who had turned onto his side and started winding his arms around Keith's hips, pulling them close.

“We sure will,” Lance sighed contently, cuddling against Keith's chest, nuzzling his face into his neck. “But maybe we could take another break before our next round though. I'm like super tired.” A loud growl and from Lance's stomach. “And hungry too,” he added laughing.

“I think we have some leftover pizza from before,” Keith said, lightly rubbing the tips of his fingers up and down Lance's back.

“Ooh yeah let's eat that,” Lance said leaning his head up.

“Ok I'll go get it,” Keith said pressing a kiss to the top of Lance's head before extracting himself from his arms. He pushing the blanket off himself and swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood up, his legs a bit wobbly and weak from exertion. Bending over, he grabbed his briefs off the floor of his room that had been discarded there several hours ago, and pulled them on before starting for the bedroom door.

“Hey Keith?” Lance said from behind him.

“Yeah?” Keith said twisting around the look at Lance, who was sprawled out on the small bed, looking up at him with a hesitant smile.

“Now that we’re like, together and shit, can I admit something to you?” Lance asked running a hand through his hair.

“Um, yeah sure, of course,” Keith said turning more to face him.

“Ok,” Lance said propping himself up on his elbows. He took a deep breath, as if preparing himself to say something deep and meaningful. “You have the best ass I’ve literally ever seen.”

“Oh my god,” Keith breathed, rolling his eyes— though he could feel an embarrassed grin grow across his face.  

“I’m serious, this is true,” Lance said with a small laugh. “Like when they say “an ass that just won’t quit” like yours is the ass that other ass is trying to be like.”

“Oh jesus christ— Lance stop,” Keith huffed through an uncontrollable smile.

“No honestly though,” Lance continued grinning. “Sometimes when you wear those running leggings I’m just like _fucking NUT_.”

“I hate you so much,” Keith lied, covering his face with his hands. “I’m gonna go get the pizza now.”

“I hate when you leave, but I love to watch you go,” Lance said laying back down on the bed, folding his arms behind his head.

“Watch this,” Keith said giving him the finger as he walked backwards out of his bedroom. He kept walking backwards watching Lance laugh, until he was out of sight in the living room.

Keith grabbed the leftover pizza box that they had left on the coffee table which still had some slices still inside. After completing the 1st mark on their punch card, Lance had suggested ordering food and spending the rest of the night completing the bet— only this time with each other. However, midway through eating they had gotten distracted and completed the 2nd and then subsequently the 3rd mark on their drink car quickly achieving the “getting laid” portion of their bet in almost record time. Lance’s logic was so that they’d both get their prizes in the end. And though Keith told Lance he still wasn’t going to let him drive his motorcycle, Lance had conceded to having Keith drive him around on it often, to which he was happy to oblige. Though Keith knew that they didn’t really need an excuse to have a dangerous amount of sex; it just seemed more fun this way.

Walking back into the bedroom, Keith saw that Lance was sitting cross legged on the bed after having put on his boxers and one of Keith’s black hoodies that had been lying around that said “P!ATD” in fancy gold lettering on the chest. Setting the pizza box down on the bed and climbing up the bed to sit down, Keith contemplated the new and wildly affectionate response he was having to seeing Lance in his clothes.

“That’s my sweater,” Keith said as more of an observation than anything else as he opened the pizza box.

“Yeah do you mind if I borrow it?” Lance asked. Keith shook his head and took a slice. “Cool cool, thanks. I’ve always thought it looked soft and warm and I was right, this shit is comfy.”

“It really is,” Keith agreed. “And you know… I don’t mind you borrowing my clothes, you know. Just for like future reference.”

“Ok yeah cool,” Lance nodded reaching for a slice. “I don’t mind you borrowing my clothes either. Although I’m pretty sure you already do.”

“What do you mean?” Keith asked around a mouth full of pizza.

“Well, remember the party?” Keith nodded. “I’m pretty sure you were wearing my clothes. I mean I don’t mind, and if I’m being perfectly honest I was totally swooning at the sight of you in my shirt because, you know, I’m gay for you like that,” Lance joked.

“I think it’s in my laundry bin if you want it back, after I wash it of course,” Keith said gesturing to the pile of clothes in the plastic hamper in the corner of the bedroom.

“Nah it’s cool,” Lance said waving him off. “You look better in red than I do anyway.”

“Ok thanks,” Keith said smiling softly.

They lapsed into a comfortable silence as they ate their lukewarm pizza. Keith just ran his eyes over Lance’s features; from the steep sloping of his nose to his delicate eyelashes to the softness of his full lips. He hadn’t even realized he had stopped eating and was just blatantly staring at Lance, until Lance quirked an eyebrow at him and looked at him with confusion.

“Why are you just staring at me?” Lance asked covering his mouth full of pizza with his hand.

“You’re like really pretty,” Keith blurted out before he could stop himself.

“Wow, gay,” Lance snorted. Keith leveled him a flat look. “I’m kidding. Well, no… that was gay because we’re like, gaying here together. But what I meant to say was thank you.”

“We’re _gaying_?” Keith repeated with a laugh. “That’s what you describe this as?” he gestured between them.

“Well I don’t want to say I’m “bi-ing” that just sounds weird,” Lance said with a smirk. “So instead I’ll just use the nosotros form.”

“Yeah ok,” Keith nodded appreciatively. “Makes sense to me.” There was a long pause as they went back to eating. “But so… we’re actually doing this right?” Lance looked up at him, tilting his head to the side in confusion. “The gaying thing I mean. We’re like… officially together right?”

“Actually I gotta break up with my other girlfriends and my long distance online boyfriend/sugar daddy but yeah _I guess_ you could say we’re official,” Lance snarked.

“Actually no, you should keep the sugar daddy,” Keith said pretending to think for a second. “That could come in handy later on, you never know. He could buy us stuff.”

“Yeah you’re right,” Lance laughed. “But… to actually answer your question: I’d like to be, you know, officially together. If–if that’s what you want?”

“I do,” Keith said quickly. “I mean… I’d like to be boyfriends… I’m just…”

“You’re just what?” Lance asked.

“I don’t know, nervous I guess?” Keith admitted with a shrug. “I’ve never done this before. I’m not even sure what we do exactly.”

“Whatever we want,” Lance said with a gentle smile. “In fact, nothing really has to change from before. We just add things like more hand holding and pet names and even more sexting.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at Keith who shoved his arm lightly in return. “And best of all, when we hang out and do nothing we get to call those dates.”

“Hmm that doesn't sound too bad,” Keith said pretending to weigh the options. “Wait, what kind of pet names are we talking about here?”

“Oh I have a bunch that I'm gonna use for you, you'll love it,” Lance said nodding his head and grinning. “Names like sugarplum, sweetums, teddy bear, babydoll, kitten—”

“Ok no, none of those,” Keith cut him off mid list. “It's gotta be simple and nothing insane like sugarplum or teddychair or whatever you said.”

“Hmm ok,” Lance said pretending to think hard for a moment. “You got it, _babe_.”

“That one's fine,” Keith said fighting the blush that threatened to take over his face.

“So what are you gonna call me?” Lance asked interested.

“What's wrong with Lance?” Keith asked. “Isn't it already a nickname for you?”

“Well _yeah_ but terms of endearment aren't just nicknames, they are sweet little names you give the person you love to show them you love them and/or are not mad at them,” Lance said jokingly.

“Does that mean I get to use Leandro when I'm mad at you?” Keith smirked.

“Please don't, you'll sound like my mother,” Lance shuddered.

“Ok I won't,” Keith laughed.

“But there's tons of cute little terms of endearment you can use,” Lance continued grinning. “Like cutiepie, marshmallow fluff, honey bunches of oats, time bandit—”

“How about just honey?” Keith suggested cutting him off again.

“I can live with that,” Lance said with a shrug, but the beaming smile in his face suggested that he was extremely happy with the result.

“Ok, _honey_ ,” Keith said emphasizing the word and watching Lance preen. “Well I think we just about figured everything out right?”

“We are just fucking killing it at this gaying thing,” Lance laughed. “We're on a goddamn roll; we figured out our nicknames for each other, we outlined what are dates are, we've discussed how your ass is just incredible, and we've already had sex four times in the past several hours. I mean, boyfriends of the year am I right?”

“I'd say so,” Keith chuckled, taking another bite of his pizza.

“Best boyfriends ever.”

“You bet.”


End file.
